Through My Heart
by YuviForever
Summary: After accidentally blurting out one of her observations during a practice, Teiko's coach requests Nanase Miho to become the first string's training assistant/manager. Having no interest in the sport, Miho refuses. What happens when she loses a bet against a certain green haired tsundere and is forced to join the basketball team? Prequel to Through the Hoop. Teiko Days MidorimaxOC.
1. 七濑美穗 － Nanase Miho

**Through My Heart**

_**~First Quarter: Her Talent ~**_

_**第一季: 她的天赋**_

* * *

**Chapter 1 -七濑美穗 － ****Nanase Miho**

"I can't believe a middle school is this big..." Nanase Miho let out a sigh of defeat as she wandered around in the halls of Teiko Middle School just a few minutes before the welcome ceremony started.

"Gymnasium A...argh, why does this school have five gymnasiums? This is ridiculous! I even prepared my speech as a school representative too...!" the girl clutched her blue hair as her dark navy blue eyes scanned the hallway for people.

Nanase Miho has a terrible sense of direction. She had to go to a place more than a multiple times before she could memorize the route.

Having scored a perfect score on her entrance exam, Miho was requested to make a speech at the opening ceremony. Obviously, that wasn't working out too well at the moment.

Finally setting her blue eyes on a batch of pink hair, the girl ran forward, "Um excuse me! Can you please tell me where Gymnasium A is?"

The pink haired girl turned around, "Huh? Oh! I was headed there too! I'll take you there!"

Miho bowed, "Thank you very much!"

.-.-.-.

"With the help of our teachers, and the support of my fellow students, I hope we have a great year at Teiko Middle School!" Miho successfully finished her speech at the podium.

The blue haired girl was never a big fan of making speeches. She preferred doing things that didn't attract too much attention upon herself. However, her father requested her to have absolutely perfect grades and be a good role model for all. Thus, she was quite forced into accepting this speech proposal from the principal of the school.

It seems her speech wasn't too bad, however. As the clapping deafened across the gymnasium, Miho started feeling slightly proud of herself. Just a bit.

Once her speech was done, she went back to her front roll seat and sat by the other representative that made a speech. His name was Akashi Seiijuro, she remembered. He seemed like a very serious boy. He had flaming red hair and a seemingly low height.

Slightly frightened by the serious gaze he was wearing, Miho decided to avoid making chat with the red head next to her.

After the ceremony finally decided to end, Nanase managed to spot the pink haired girl from before in the crowd. She had never asked for her name yet, since she rushed to the principal once she found the gym.

Pushing through the crowd of students, Miho managed to reach the pink haired girl, "Uff. Um, hi. I wanted to thank you for before...!"

The girl turned to her, "Ah! Nanase-chan, was it? It's no problem! I was very surprised when I found out that you were the one that made the speech!"

Miho put on a small smile, "Thank you. Uh..."

"Momoi Satsuki! Nanase-chan, what class are you in?" Momoi asked with wide, pink eyes.

Miho hurriedly took out her schedule from her school bag, "Um...class 7-1."

Momoi brightened at this, "Really? Oh, Nanase-chan! We're in the same class! Yay! Come on, let hurry up and find it!"

With that, the pink head dragged the blue haired girl towards their homeroom. Well, it was good to have a friend.

.-.-.-.

"Midorima Shintaro-san?" the teacher called the name of a boy in the class.

Miho heard a deep voice behind her respond, "Yes."

"Momoi Satsuki-san?"

Momoi, who sat beside the bluenette, chirped up at the sound of her name, "I'm here!"

The teacher proceeded onto the next name, "Nanase Miho-san?"

Miho met her teacher's gaze and responded politely, "I'm here."

The teacher nodded quickly before continuing her list of names.

Miho sat at her desk beside the window and looked out. She let out a small sigh. It was going to be another year full of studying. Teiko was a school known for it's basketball club and it's grades. Her father had made sure that she enrolled herself in the best, academic-wise, school possible. Now, she felt like she was in a small prison, unable to escape.

"Alright, it looks like everyone is here. My name is Fujikata Kaho and I will be your homeroom teacher this year," the female teacher smiled at the class.

The teacher was not very tall—definitely shorter than Miho, who was about 164 centimeters. She wore a pair of spectacles and had her grey hair tied in a ponytail.

Miho watched Fujikata as she spoke again, "This year, I will select the two class representative based on their entrance exam grades. The two who score the highest in our class is...Midorima Shintaro and Nanase Miho."

The blue haired girl let out a mental groan. No, _anything_ but class representative...However, if she refused, the consequences from her father would be...

"Would you two like to take up the role as the class representative?" Fujikata-sensei smiled.

Miho let out a sigh before putting on a small smile, "I would be honored to, Fujikata-sensei. Thank you very much!"

The teacher nodded and looked at the man called Midorima Shintaro.

The boy pushed up his black-framed glasses and nodded, "I would take up the role as well."

Miho noticed the boy was very tall when she stood next to him at the front of the classroom. He was about a head taller than the bluenette. He had green hair and his left hand fingers were bandaged up. She found this very strange.

"Please introduce yourselves to the class," the teacher told the two as they stood.

Miho went first, "I am Nanase Miho and I'm looking forward to working with you all!"

The green haired boy simply pushed up his glasses, "Midorima Shintaro."

After the introductions, the first class finally started. Miho had math first. Life was not looking too well to her.

.-.-.-.

"Ugh, I'm completely beat!" Momoi grumbled as she stood up and stretched after the last class of the day, World History.

Miho put away her new books into her bags and let out a nod in agreement, "Yeah. Today was a long day of introductions..."

At her sentence, Momoi turned to her new found friend, "Hey Micchan, are you joining any clubs?"

The pink haired girl had declared calling her full name a hassle at lunch today and gave Miho a nickname. The girl didn't mind it too much. Her mother always called her by a ridiculous nickname at home and 'Micchan' didn't sound too bad.]

Turning, Miho answered the question, "I was thinking about the student council. What about you, Momoi-chan?"

Momoi put on a face of disgust, "Ah! Micchan! I noticed, but you're so serious and proper all the time! Loosen up and join something like the basketball club! Teiko is famous for their basketball club!"

"Hm, you're joining the basketball club, Momoi-chan? I thought there was no girls' team," Miho pondered aloud.

Momoi and the Miho started walking as they talked.

"I have a friend that's joining and he's really good! I was thinking of becoming the manager or something...I know! Let's both become managers!" Momoi grinned happily at her idea.

Miho bit her lip before shaking her head, "Uh, I have no interest in basketball. I don't like sports too much."

Momoi pouted, "Ah, but Micchan! I know! Let's go watch the first strings practice today! You can decide whether or not you want to join after this!"

The bluenette let out a sigh, "Alright. Let's go."

.-.-.-.

Balls, shoes, and sweat.

Nanase Miho could _not_ imagine anything fun about this tiresome sport. You chase the ball there, chase the ball here, and finally get your hands on the ball only to have it stolen away from you.

Even as a manager, she wanted nothing to do with this sport that involved an orange ball.

Momoi, on the other hand, was sparking with excitement, "Ne, Micchan! Isn't that guy really cool? His dribbling skills are exceptional!"

Momoi pointed to a man with dark hair. He was dribbling easily through the rest of the people on the court.

Raising an eyebrow, Miho watched the guy as he did a layup. It was sure that he had great speed...however...

"Doesn't he always twitch his elbow the opposite direction of where he wants to go when he is being blocked by an opponent? Can't he opponent notice?" Miho asked Momoi in a semi loud voice since the gym was so loud.

Momoi turned to Miho in shock before observing again, "Micchan...you're right...he does! Wow! You're really observant! Micchan, you should definitely join as the manager!"

Just after she finished saying that, an older black haired man with glasses gently tapped Miho on the shoulder, "Excuse me...but how did you notice that habit so easily?"

.-.-.-.

Coach Sanada hurried back to the first string court after briefing the new members on the test. There were a lot of freshmen this year and he could only hope that there were a few talented basketball players amongst the bunch.

When he was about the enter the court, he saw two girls standing by the door. One had pink hair and the other had dark blue hair. They seemed to be talking about one of the regulars on the team right now.

He was a good player, however after three years of coaching him, Sanada noticed a very threatening habit from the guy.

"Doesn't he always twitch his elbow the opposite direction of where he wants to go when he is being blocked by an opponent? Can't he opponent notice?" the blue haired girl asked the pink haired girl.

Sanada widened his eyes at the comment. She _was _ just observing, right? How did she notice that habit so easily?! Even as his coach, he had just recently noticed it. Noticing it just by a look, that girl had to have a talent and also an extremely fast and good eye.

Needing this kind of talent, Sanada tapped a finger on the blue haired girl's shoulder, "Excuse me...but how did you notice that habit so easily?"

.-.-.-.

Miho stared at the man and blinked for a while before shaking her head, "Pardon?"

"You saw that habit very easily. It is something that I, the coach, only just noticed," Sanada explained to the befuddled girl.

The bluenette turned back to the match, "Well...isn't it obvious? Actually, now that I look at it, everyone's doing something weird. The guy with glasses twitches his knee whenever he's going to fake, the bald one always grins for a second before a pass and..."

As Miho continued, Momoi watched the coach look at the things that Miho was pointing out and widen his eyes.

"What is your name?" the man gripped the girl's shoulder.

"Ah! N-Nanase Miho..." Miho gasped at the grip on her shoulder as she responded.

"Can you please join the basketball team as a manager or a training assistant?" Coach Sanada requested the girl with a firm look in his eyes.

At this moment, Momoi spoke up, "Uh, I would like to join as a manager as well."

The coached finally noticed the pink haired girl. He thought for a while before nodding, "Alright. Nanase Miho-san, if you join the basketball team, both you and your friend can be the managers of the first string. Is that okay?"

Momoi gave the blue haired girl a plead with her eyes.

Miho bit her lip and looked back at the coach, "Um...Is it okay if I think it over? I have no experience with basketball and I don't even know all of the rules..."

"It is fine. If you join, we will be sure to teach you that," Sanada reassured, "However, I will give you a consideration period. Please feel free to think it through. I'll be back at Gymnasium C if you need me for today."

With that, the man walked away.

Miho stared after him before letting out another sigh, "What was that...?"

Momoi tapped the girl's shoulders in excitement, "Micchan! If you join, we can both be first-string regulars managers together! Please join, Micchan!"

"I don't like basketball... I'm not particularly interested in the sport..." Miho replied, casting an apologetic glance at Momoi.

Momoi foresaw the reply and came up with a plan. She really wanted to be the manager of the team with Miho. On top of that, managing the _first-string_—that was some privilege.

"Then Micchan...if you win this bet, I promise I won't bother you ever again. However, if you lose, then you'll have to join the team with me...!" Momoi declared.

Miho raised an eyebrow, "Bet?"

"It's quite simple actually. If you can place at the very top on the bulletin board on the next test, you win. If not, then you lose," Momoi grinned.

The blue haired girl stared at her new friend skeptically before nodding slightly, "Very top of the bulletin board, right?"

"Yup! Your name has to be first!" Momoi told the girl.

"Fine! I accept!" Miho pumped her hands into fists.

She _really_ didn't want Momoi to nag her for the rest of the year on that basketball club issue. She's only known her for a day, but she felt that Momoi could get _very_ naggy if she wanted. Besides, because of her father, it was absolutely _mandatory_ to place first during every test. Thus, why not add a bet in along the way?

.-.-.-.

Nanase Miho stared at the bulletin board and back at the beaming pink haired girl beside her in shock. There was no way...

"Micchan! Your name isn't first!" Momoi smiled happily, "You lose the bet!"

Indeed, her name wasn't first. They had sorted the results alphabetically. Therefore, the people who received the same mark would also be sorted alphabetically. Miho couldn't believe that she fell into a loophole trap.

_1. Midorima Shintaro_

_1. Nanase Miho_

This was _not_ happening.

Miho turned around and glared at Momoi, "You're kidding me, right? This is unfair! It's not _my_ fault that his last name is one letter before mine!"

Momoi just let out a cheeky grin, "The bet was 'at the very top of the bulletin

board'...! Not the best grade."

When she said that, Midorima Shintaro walked in to see the results beside Miho.

He pushed up his glasses and nodded, "Good, I placed first."

Miho turned to glare at the guy, "You...Why do you have to have a last name that starts with a letter before mine...!"

He turned to her with a look of annoyance in his eyes, "Who are you?"

Miho let out an exasperated sigh. She was the class representative with him...! How could he not remember?!

"I'm Nanase Miho. I'm the class representative with you," Miho remade the introduction.

Right now, she realized that she was not being very polite with the boy. It probably didn't matter, however. Since Miho's probably going to detest him and his last name for the rest of the year. Besides, he gave off an aura of arrogance that the bluenette didn't like at all.

The green haired boy pushed up his glasses, "What is you birthday and your blood type?"

Nanase Miho just stared at him for a little while before nodding, "Uh...December 25th...my blood type is AB, I think."

Wait, why was she even telling him this?

"Your zodiac sign is Capricorn while mine is Cancer. We should get along fairly well. On the other hand, your blood type is AB while mine is B...we should get along where there as well," Midorima explained, "Capricorn's lucky item today is a watering can. Mine is a post stamp."

At this, he held out a small stamp for the bluenette to see. Miho and Momoi looked at each other with wild expressions. Just who the heck was this guy...!

"I will be heading off to practice now. See you," Midorima exited the hallway where Momoi and Nanase stood.

After a while of silence Momoi spoke, "Now that I think about it...wasn't he one of the first years that got into the first string with Dai-chan?"

Miho looked at the girl, "Dai-chan? First string? What are you talking about?"

The pink haired girl explained, "Oh, it's the basketball team. That day when the coach saw us, the new members had a test to determine which string they belonged too. First years usually never made the first string, however Midorima Shintaro and my childhood friend Aomine Daiki made it. There were two more people that I don't know as well."

Miho let out a sigh, "Well, I guess let head to the gym. It's time to take my path as a manager in a dumb sport..."

Momoi cheered up instantly, "Yay! Let's go! I can't wait. Besides, we're going to see the first string today!"

.-.-.-.

When Miho and Momoi entered the gym, a tanned blue haired teen saw them and walked up to them, "Oi, Satsuki. What are you doin' here?"

Momoi grinned at the boy, "Micchan and I are going to become the managers of the first string! We just need to talk to Coach Sanada."

The boy gave Miho a stare, "Who's she?"

"Nanase Miho! She was the speech representative at the opening ceremony! Mou...Dai-chan! Were you sleeping again?" Momoi asked the boy.

"Che, what's so fun about an opening ceremony anyways. Well, see ya! I've got to go practice."

After he left, Miho noticed that the people in the first string all seemed pretty built and professional. Everyone was tall to some degree and their skills seemed quite polished.

Turning his head, he noticed Midorima Shintaro and another violet haired boy that she hadn't seen before. Boy, was he tall.

At that moment, Momoi tugged her hand, "Come on! Let go! Coach Sanada's looking at us!"

Miho nodded. Well maybe this wasn't going to be _too_ bad, right?

"It is good to see you two here. Momoi Satsuki and Nanase Miho. Have you two made your decision?" Sanada asked with a smile on his face.

"Yes, I'll join as the manager," Miho nodded with a smile.

"Me too!" Momoi grinned.

Sanada nodded, "Alright. Momoi-san, you will become the first string's manager. As for Nanase-san, I want you to be a training-assistant."

"Training-assistant?"

"Yes, you will help me see what each player lacks during the practices and help me come up with the training menus. Today, you will go to the third strings court to develop your skills and learn the rules and basics of the sport," Sanada nodded sternly to the girl, "Momoi-san, you will come with me."

Miho nodded, "Alright, thank you."

As Sanada left with Momoi, another man stood by Miho, "Nanase Miho, right? I am Watanabe Mizuki. I am the third string's coach. I will be leading you for the next two days."

The an had dark brown hair to his shoulders and he was pretty tall.

Miho nodded, "Alright, I'll be in your assistance, Coach Watanabe."

"Right this way please, Nanase-san," Watanabe motioned as he led Miho out to the third string gym.

Just what had Miho gotten herself into?

* * *

A/N: I do not own Kuroko no Basuke or any of the characters.

Okay! For those of you that know me from my story, Through the Hoop, this is the long await prequel! Um...some of the facts in the sequel might be wrong. For example, how Miho said that she was the manager - that isn't exactly right. You'll see in the later chapters.

Also, it was so hard transitioning from first person to third! I started realizing and before I knew it, the story was in first person. Argh. If you see those mistakes, please tell me! I would really appreciate it!

Also, I really want some reviews for this story! The issue of which one I would be updating has come up, and I decided that the chapter which gets the most reviews would be the next story I update. Thus, I would really appreciate it if you all gave a review for the chapters! They really give me the motivation to write the story! ^_^

Anyways, thank you all for reading this! I love you all!

~Yuvi


	2. 对篮球的热情 － Passion For Basketball

**Through My Heart**

_**~First Quarter: Her Talent ~**_

_**第一季: 她的天赋**_

* * *

**Chapter 2： 对篮球的热情－ ****Passion For Basketball**

"Momoi-san...what are you doing?" Miho put down her book bag once she got to class.

The pink haired girl looked up from her notebook, "Ah! Micchan! I was looking at the notes I took regarding the first team that Teiko's playing against for basketball!"

Miho pulled her chair over to her friend's desk and observed the notes, "Those are quite specific. You seem to be good at this..."

Momoi smiled, "I'm going to try my best to be of use to the team! Oh yeah, Micchan, what did you do yesterday?"

Miho let out a small sigh as she recalled the previous day's events. Coach Watanabe had given her a handbook on the rules of basketball. After that, she had observed the third string players and given them tips on how to improve. Watanabe had been pretty impressed by the girl's skills. He had wondered how Sanada could find such a talented manager amongst all those students.

"Wow! Micchan, you sound really awesome! I can't wait until your training in the third string is over! Then we can work together in the first string. Speaking of the first string..." Momoi had started her rant on the four amazing players that joined.

One of them was her childhood friend, Aomine Daiki. Miho saw him as a pretty weird tanned guy. The other one was 'Horoscope-san', as Miho decided to name Midorima. She probably could've expected him to join the basketball team, though. Since he _was_ really tall.

The other two were named Murasakibara Atsushi and Akashi Seiijuro. Miho recognized the later one from the speech he made in the opening ceremony. Momoi had explained how Murasakibara was two meters tall. It was a scary thought and Miho would've liked to stay away from such a giant...

.-.-.-.

After managing to get past all the classes with Momoi's constant bickering about the basketball team, Miho decided to leave the pink haired girl on her own. She didn't want to waste another lunch period talking about a sport that she hated.

Walking through the hallway with her bento, Miho spotted a familiar flash of yellow.

"No way..." the bluenette whispered as she ran after the boy with yellow hair, "Ryo-chan...?"

The boy turned around after he heard his name. As usual, girls surrounded him. Seeing him turn around for Miho, the girls glared at her with jealousy.

Miho, however, could care less. Kise Ryota was her childhood friend. To her, he was like an older brother. However, she didn't think he also went to the prestigious school, Teiko...

"Mihocchi!" the boy grinned upon seeing her and walked forward and greeted her with a crushing hug.

Miho could tell that something bad was going to befall her from the venomous stares that she was getting.

"Ryo-chan. I didn't know you went to Teiko!" Miho grinned after being released from the hug.

Kise turned to his fans, "Uh...can you guys please excuse me for a second? I need to catch up on some things with my childhood friend here...I'm really sorry!"

.-.-.-.

After a long period of convincing and pestering, Kise and Miho finally managed to arrive at an empty classroom to take out their lunches.

"Eh? You really started to model?" Miho widened her eyes at the boys declaration.

"Yup! It's actually pretty fun! I also have a lot of fans now. Wait...Mihocchi didn't see my magazines...?!" Kise realized and put on a pouting face.

The bluenette ate the rice ball that she made herself. She had to make lunch for her whole family since both her parents lacked cooking skills.

"I'm sorry, Ryo-chan. I've been busy with my academics lately," Miho responded after finishing chewing a piece of her lunch.

Kise sighed, "Right...papa Nanase was always very strict. I don't think he liked me very much."

"Ryo-chan was loud and too flashy for him. Anyways it's nice to see you again after we moved! It's great that we are in the same school!" Miho smiled.

Nanase's family and Kise's family used to be neighbors. When they were young, the two kids would often play with each other. Ever since the fourth grade of elementary school, both of the families moved away resulting in the lack of communication between the two.

"Mihocchi, can I have you phone number so we can text sometimes?" Kise grinned while taking out his phone.

Miho nodded and the two exchanged their numbers.

"Did you join any clubs, Mihocchi?" Kise asked.

Hearing the question, Miho let out a long sigh, "Yeah...the basketball club. I'm a training assistant and manager thing..."

Kise raised an eyebrow, "I thought Mihocchi hated sports."

Miho covered her face with her left hand, "Ugh...Ryo-chan, it's a long and complicated story that I don't want to share..."

"Oh...well look at the time! I gotta go now! Bye Mihocchi! I'll see you later!" Kise happily smiled as he pushed open the door of the classroom.

The bluenette nodded, "See you..."

Miho smiled to herself after the model left. It was pleasant—seeing a good friend from before.

Perhaps the year wasn't going to be too bad after all.

.-.-.-.

"The one minute break's over! Next, we're doing the three man weave!" Watanabe shouted as the members of the third string panted and walked back into their positions.

Miho quickly told him some of the things that the first strings could to improve their performance while they were practicing. He nodded and told me to jot the notes down on his clipboard.

After the exercises, the third strings went on to the practice matches against each other. The bluenette was in charge of giving tips as they did the practice.

"You should've passed there to the teammate behind you instead of dribbling. That ways, the ball wouldn't have been stolen away," she explained to a boy as he was taking a sip of water.

He thought for a while before smiling at her, "Hey, thanks!"

Nanase nodded and moved on to the next person, "In basketball, all people on the court should try and cooperate with each other. Just standing there waiting for the ball to come to you isn't going to help. You should run along with the team to give help whenever necessary. If you just stand there, it's like losing a player," she told the next boy.

He seemed to understand and gave the girl a panting nod. Miho looked at him in worry and passed him a towel and a water bottle, "You should always stay hydrated. Dehydration isn't going to help either."

He smiled, "Thank you, Nanase."

The girl nodded before moving on to the next.

After the break was over, the matches started again. As she was watching, Miho noticed a commotion over in the corner of the gym.

"Um...you! Hey, don't puke here...!"

Miho walked over and saw a small boy with light blue hair puking in the corner. Come to think of it...she hasn't ever seen him before.

"Resume the match and sub somebody in for him," the girl told the boys before walking over to the boy.

"Yes ma'am!" the boys shouted.

Miho gently placed my hand on the boy's head, "Are you okay?"

He turned towards her. His face was pale and he looked tired.

At that moment, the coach saw the two and walked over, "Go to the bathroom and take a break," he ordered the boy.

The boy haired boy nodded and walked out of the gym.

"Coach Watanabe...! Is he going to be okay?" Miho turned and asked.

He gave her a stern look, "If he isn't suited to play basketball, then he shouldn't play. Don't worry about him and continue your good work. The players have said many good things about you."

Miho stared at the boy and then back at the hallway, "...Okay."

The bluenette walked back with the whistle and continued with her notes and suggestions. She thought hat coach was way too rough on the players. He didn't even care about that boy... This team seemed pretty evil and tiresome. Miho honestly didn't understand why these people would actually stay on the team.

Well, it wasn't her problem anyhow.

"Work on your footwork more! The reason you can't catch up to the rest is because your footing is off. Do some footwork practices outside or at home," Miho once again told a player, who nodded gratefully.

Sighing, she sat back onto the bench and took more notes as the players practiced. Seeing these players and the ones she saw in the first string a couple of days ago, she could tell that the first stringers were a lot better.

"Um..." a voice beside the girl called.

Surprised, she turned and saw the blue haired boy beside her. When did he get here...!

"Wah! I-I'm sorry! When did you get here?" Miho gasped.

"Just now..." he muttered.

It was strange...she didn't notice him at all!

"Are you alright?" she asked as she handed him a water bottle and a towel as she put the pencil and clipboard away.

He nodded, "Thank you so much."

"That's a relief. You shouldn't push yourself too hard. The training here is ridiculous..." Nanase smiled.

There was something about this boy that made her feel...calm.

He drank out of the bottle before standing up, "I'm going to get back to practice."

"Eh? Oh...okay. What's your name?" she asked him.

"I'm Kuroko Tetsuya. Thank you for all the help, Nanase-san," the boy bowed before giving a small smile and running back onto the court.

Miho saw him bowing to the coach before resuming practice. There was something that she saw in those boy's eyes. She could tell, Kuroko Tetsuya really loved basketball.

.-.-.-.

"How is she?" Coach Sanada asked Coach Watanabe he entered the coach's office.

Watanabe closed the door. The practices had just ended and he had just told Miho that she was to start at the first strings tomorrow.

"She's more talented than you thought. After explaining the rules and giving her a book about basketball for her to read, she's basically understood everything about the sport. Now, she's giving in depth tips to the players on the third court. Some of those tips, I didn't even think of," Watanabe explained and passed the clipboard of Miho's notes to Sanada.

Sanada listened flips through the pages of neat and small professional writing. He widened her eyes at some of the parts. Once he finished reading, he set the clipboard back down.

"I'm going to make her my assistant for training the first strings," Sanada stated.

Watanabe widened his eyes, "A trainer? Her? Do you think she can do it? That involves coming up with regimes and fully developing the players, right? Sanada, no matter what, she still a first year middle school girl. On top of that, she had next to no knowledge about basketball until recently—"

"It's fine. She can do it. We need someone like her. I feel that she can bring out the true potential of the players," Sanada nodded before writing down some notes for himself, "Alright, you can leave now, Watanabe."

"Okay," the third string's coach shook her head in disbelief before departing.

The girl was interesting, but not _that_ good.

.-.-.-.

"Kuroko-kun, you must really like basketball to practice that hard even after feeling sick," Miho told the boy after he stepped out of the change rooms.

He seemed surprised to see her, "Nanase-san?"

Miho smiled. The truth was, she wanted to know what he liked so much about the sport. It didn't seem all that interesting to her. It was just scoring a basket, right? Was it really worth all that trouble?

Soon, the two started walking back home together.

"So why did Nanase-san join the basketball club?" Kuroko asked.

Miho once again let out a sigh, "It was a forced decision..."

The boy turned to her with a confused expression, "Forced?"

The bluenette let out a laugh, "Never mind me. Why did Kuroko-kun join the basketball team?"

"I like basketball. Also, I made a promise to my friend that we would compete against each other one day," the light blue haired boy smiled.

Miho stared at him. It wasn't a fluke or a forced decision—Kuroko joined the basketball team out of his own will.

"It's beautiful..." a gasp of realization escaped Miho's mouth.

"Pardon?" the boy turned to her.

"Your determination and love for basketball is kind of beautiful...if that makes any sense," Miho tried to explain.

"I'm sorry, it doesn't," Kuroko blankly stated.

Miho deadpanned at the blunt statement before laughing, "Ahaha, Kuroko-kun?"

"Hm?"

"I really like you! Let's be friends!" the girl smiled and held out her hand as she moved ahead and started walking backwards.

The boy blinked for a while before smiling, "Alright, Nanase-chan. Want to go get some milkshakes before heading back?"

"Okay!" Miho smiled and walked with the boy.

He was someone interesting. Yet, Miho felt that there was something hidden inside of him. Some sort of undiscovered strength. However, that was something she should worry about for another time. Finally, she found another friend from Teiko Middle School.

.-.-.-.

"Everyone gather up!" Coach Sanada blew the whistle as Momoi and the first string players gathered in front of the coach and a long blue haired girl.

"Everyone, this is Nanase Miho and she will be your assistant Trainer and second manager from today on! She will give you tips and feedback on the exercises that you do! Be sure to listen to her!" Sanada announced.

"I'm Nanase Miho, it is nice to be of your acquaintance!" the girl bowed before smiling softly.

She wore her sweater from her school uniform and tied her blue hair up in a ponytail. A whistle and timer hung from her neck and a notebook and pencil was located in her right hand.

"She's pretty cute," a boy whispered to another.

"You idiot...that's the girl who scored a perfect score on her entrance exam...!" the other boy whispered back.

"Okay! Now get on to the warm up drills!" Sanada exclaimed, causing the boys to scramble off to their respective courts.

After finishing his orders to the boys, Sanada turned to Miho, "I want you to just give them leading tips today. After each match, give me your notes. After the training is over, I want you to come to my office beside this gym and help me develop some training schedule? Understood?"

Miho nodded, "Yes, sir."

While taking notes, Miho noticed that the plays of these players were a lot more polished than the third string. Most of the notes are more habit and weakness related in contrast to the development related notes she took in the third string. Also, it seemed a lot harder to find a place that the players needed to work on just by mere observation.

Miho also noticed that Sanada was a lot stricter than Watanabe. The warm up exercises were also more gruesome and difficult. While she was watching, she noticed Momoi taking the laundry and also discussing things with the coach.

As she moved around the courts, the exercises were slowly ending and some mini games started. A certain red haired boy with a green haired boy caught the girl's attention. Akashi Seiijuro and Midorima Shintaro were going against a team of seniors. Did Coach Sanada organize this as well?

Settling on that match being the first one she watches, Miho sat down near the match and took out the notebook that she had received from Sanada.

From there, Miho noticed that the green haired boy was indeed very good. She could tell that every one of his shots had never missed before. However, what was more amazing was that the shots were all three pointers.

Akashi was also very skilled. He was small and swift. However, he also had this aura around him that made him hard to approach.

Miho quickly took the notes on the game. After a while, she looked at the score: 32-35. The team with the first years was winning. Momoi had said that they were good, but not _this good._

A cheer caused Miho to turn to the other court. She ran over and saw Momoi's childhood friend land a perfect dunk. On his face plastered a happy smile as he enjoyed every moment of the game.

Miho widened her eyes at the sight. It was something that could be described at dazzling. The aura of confidence and happiness as that boy played was truly something to admire.

"Aomine Daiki..." Miho whispered as she just stared.

Never in her life had she felt so mixed up. There was a warm feeling in her chest just by watching the boy play. She had felt it as well yesterday, watching Kuroko practice. It was passion, love, and heart.

Nanase Miho realized why these boys were playing. Every single one of them loved the sport to no end. And before she realized it, she had started growing fond of the sport with an orange ball as well.

.-.-.-.

"Through and detailed as always, Nanase-san," Sanada commended as he read through Miho's notes.

The girl allowed herself to be praised. The truth was, she had spent a lot of time making the notes. She had forced herself to observe every motion of the players that she saw today. Today, she had focused completely on the note taking aspect as to the tips and recommendations.

"However, just taking notes on the players' weaknesses is not going to help them improve. You must also discover their strengths and incorporate both their strengths and weaknesses and develop a training regime," Sanada started explaining, "Now, using these notes, let's develop something for the four first years that joined the first string. I want you to be in charge of their training for a while to test your capabilities."

"But, sir...do you really think I can? I mean...I'm new to the whole sport and all," Miho asked back.

"I trust you on this, Nanase-san. Those four players have great potentials, and so do you. If you train them well, they will definitely become regulars in the future. However, I'll help you for your first training menu. Are you ready?" Sanada inquired.

"Y-Yes, sir!"

.-.-.-.

Miho let out a sigh as she walked home. Coach Sanada had criticized her training menu making skills many times that afternoon. She honestly didn't understand why the man made _her_ do all the work. He knew that she was completely new to this, right?

Subconsciously, she found herself nearing the milkshake shop that Kuroko had taken her to yesterday.

She stood at the door for a while before shrugging, "Why not?"

Entering, she ordered the vanilla milkshake that Kuroko had recommended. Letting out a sigh and trying to figure out how to make those training menus from now on, Miho sat down on a table and took out her notebook.

"Um..." a voice muttered across from her.

Miho widened her eyes upon seeing the blue haired boy blinking at her with oval eyes.

"Wah! K-K-Kuroko-kun!" the girl jumped, almost spilling the milkshake.

"Hello, Nanase-san," the boy monotonously replied.

Oh god, he was there and she didn't even notice. What was happening to this world?

"Sorry I didn't notice you there, Kuroko-kun... I was thinking about something," Miho sighed before sitting back down.

"Nanase-san didn't go to practice today," Kuroko noticed while sipping his milkshake.

Miho let out a sigh before opening her notebook, "Yeah...I've been placed in charge of training a section of the first string..."

She let her delicate hands flip through the pages of Sanada's handwriting and the training regimes that they, he produced.

"Ah...this sucks..." Miho muttered.

Why was she even doing this in the first place? Why was she worrying so much about a dumb sport? When did she get so infatuated with basketball?

"Nanase-san is amazing," Kuroko stated.

"Huh?" Miho looked up.

"You're working with Coach Sanada, right?" Kuroko asked.

Miho nodded a little.

"He's a good coach, I can tell. Nanase-san shouldn't give up," Kuroko gave the girl a small smile.

Feeling refreshed, Miho nodded firmly back and packed away her things, "Thank you, Kuroko-kun! I'll do my best!"

"Me too," Kuroko replied.

Smiling the girl stood up, "Well I should go now. I'll see you sometime later. I hope we can meet in the first string soon!"

Kuroko nodded and watched the blue haired girl leave.

She was a nice girl.

* * *

A/N: I do not own Kuroko no Basuke or any of the characters.

Yay, Miho meets a lot of the Kiseki no Sedai in this chapter! Also, I'll do my best to not linger around in the first year for long. Most of the story happens after Kise joins, after all.

Anyways, thank you all for reading this! Also, as you all know, please, please review! I actually write faster if there are more reviews! Reviews actually support me a lot, so please review!

Well, thank you all for reading this! I love you all!

~Yuvi


	3. 承诺－ Acceptance

**Through My Heart**

_**~First Quarter: Her Talent ~**_

_**第一季: 她的天赋**_

* * *

**Chapter 3: 承诺－ ****Acceptance**

"Micchan! You left me again yesterday!" Momoi whined as she entered the classroom and saw Miho.

Miho looked up from her newly made training regime and put on a smile, "Ah, good morning, Momoi-san."

Momoi put both of her hands on her hips, "Don't you 'good morning' me! You promised me that we would go home together yesterday!"

Miho shrugged, "Well I didn't want to interrupt you and Aomine-kun."

"You meanie! Dai-chan and I aren't like that! Dating Dai-chan...eww!" Momoi grumbled and sat down in her desk.

The bluenette raised an eyebrow, "Wait, you're not?"

Momoi made a face, "Of course not! Dating Dai-chan...that's like dating a brother!"

Miho shook her head, "Oh, sorry."

The pink haired manager let out a sigh, "Oh well, so what are you looking at, Micchan?"

Miho passed Momoi her notebook, "It's a training regime that I made for the four first years that joined the first string on their first try."

"Oh yeah...I organized a practice match for the first strings yesterday. I think they are participating? The coach put you in charge of them?" Momoi asked.

"Yup, though I think he's probably just testing me..." Miho laughed before taking her notebook back.

Momoi grinned, "I think he really likes you! Good luck, Micchan!"

"Thank you," Miho smiled back.

It was strange how hard she was trying for this sport. But she had to admit, trying hard in something she liked was fun.

.-.-.-.

"This is the first History project we will be doing this year. It will also be the longest History project. I will put you all in pairs of two and the two of you will research an event for the whole year, and put it together in a presentation by the end of the year. There will be other projects coming off of the research that you do. Thus, it is important to choose a topic you are interested in and is able to research properly. Now, I will announce the groups," the World History teacher explained the project details a Miho inwardly groaned.

Fantastic, another boring project in History—for the _whole_ year too.

"Momoi-san, you will be with Hayato-san. Miura-san, you will be with Akugawa-san and Nanase-san, you will be with Midorima-san. Please do note that I paired each of you up as a boy-girl pair. That ways, you will also learn the meaning of getting along with your team," the teacher finished.

_"Get along my face,"_ Miho grumbled in her mind, _"God, I'm with Horoscope-kun! This is the worse thing that's ever happened to me...! He's a total weirdo!"_

"Now, please get in your groups to discuss your topic," the teacher announced.

Momoi was paired up with a cool looking brown haired boy. He looked, a lot more normal than Miho's partner was.

Today, Midorima carried a small teddy bear while his left hand was still bandaged up.

"Nanase-san, am I right?" Midorima asked as he pulled a seat over.

"Yes, Horoscope-kun," Miho muttered aloud.

There was a pause before Midorima put on an incredulous expression, "E-Excuse me? What did you call me?"

The bluenette snapped out of her thoughts and widened her eyes, "Oh! I'm so sorry, Midorima-san, right?"

Gosh, she couldn't believe she voiced her thoughts aloud. She had better stop thinking of that name before she did it again.

Midorima pushed up his glasses, "So, what would you like to do for the project?"

Miho felt that Midorima gave off a presence of 'towering'. The guy was probably at least 170 centimeters, or even more. She could certainly understand why he was a basketball player.

Finding herself staring unconsciously at the green haired boy, Miho blushed slightly and turned away, starting to read one of the history textbooks that the boy had brought over some time.

She hoped the year would be over soon.

.-.-.-.

"This is pretty well done," Sanada nodded as he read through the training regime that Miho had come up with, "You must've put a lot of thought into this. Good work."

The bluenette let out a sigh of relief that she hadn't realized that she had been holding, "Thank you, Coach Sanada. I tried my best."

"Remember, Nanase-san—Teiko's motto is absolute victory. You_ must_ do your best to ensure victory at all times, understood?" Sanada pushed up his glasses and asked.

"Yes, sir," Miho nodded and bowed.

"Also, I would encourage you to get closer to the four players that you are coaching. They will listen to someone who they respect, or who they understand. You must become closer to them in order to have them respect who you are. Good luck, Nanase-san," Sanada nodded before leaving the room.

Miho let out a long sigh. She changed her mind, this sport was not worth the effort...

.-.-.-.

Nanase Miho hated teenagers—especially hotheaded basketball boys. She stood in the midst of four exceptional basketball players and winced at their glares. Well, two of them were glaring while the other two seemed uninterested.

Aomine, Momoi's childhood friend spoke up, "Alright, can we just play basketball now?"

"Aomine-san!" Miho shouted, "All of you. I would like to inform you all that I am your trainer until Coach Sanada decides to change my role. Today, you'll all be doing my training menu. If you find it the least satisfying, you may inform Coach Sanada. Remember, Teiko's motto is absolute victory. What I am doing in only making sure that you all follow that motto. Understood?"

The four members were quite astonished by the girl's speech. They had no idea she could actually be this bold. Midorima thought she was actually quite mature for her age. To be able to order everyone like that—it took courage.

Seeing the silence, Miho continued, "First of all, before we start the training, let's go over some things. To be able to handle my training, I must be closer to you guys. Thus, let's go on first name basis!"

At this, everyone deadpanned. Miho wasn't quite sure what Sanada meant by 'closer' however, calling everyone by first name basis did mean that they were closer, right?

"Excuse me, I did not agree to this. I do not want to call a stranger that I do not understand by her first name," the red haired boy, Akashi Seiijuro stated.

Miho turned to him, "I don't either! However, this is my only choice! We'll see how it goes for one week! If after one week, we still don't feel any closer, we'll take a different approach, alright?"

Aomine was the first to speak this time.

He grinned at Miho, "Sure! Why not, Miho?"

The girl could feel a blush creeping up her cheeks. She _really_ didn't like this. Moreover, the green haired boy that had been her partner for a project up until now hadn't said anything yet.

To be honest, Miho didn't want to talk to him right now. The two had spent the entire class arguing over which period of history they wanted to study. In the end, they finally decided on the Sengoku Period and got over it. However, both of them were in quite a sour mood right now.

Following Aomine's example, Miho nodded shyly, "A-Alright...D-D-D-Dai—Dai-chan!"

Aomine shot the girl a strange look.

"It's what Momoi-san calls you, right?" Miho shook her head to cover up her blush, "Next, Murasakibara-san!"

The purple haired giant looked down on Miho, "Eh...Nana-chin would work? Right?"

Seeing that it was a nickname—and quite an embarrassing one at that, Miho accepted the name, "Yes, that would work, Atsu-chan. M-Midorima-san can go next."

The green haired boy let out a sigh, "I swear, what an idiotic...Miho."

The bluenette nodded in approval, "Then Midorima-san will be Shin-chan! Akashi-san?"

The red haired boy glared at Miho skeptically before turning his head around, "Miho."

Having accomplished her goal, the bluenette smile, "Alright! Sei-chan it is!"

The nickname earned her another scowl from the red haired boy.

However, Miho ignored it, "Alright! We will now go on to the training I planned for you today! Today, we will be doing basic exercises to improve something you all lack—stamina. Tomorrow, we will start with exercises and finish the training off with a practice match against the seniors! Let's start!"

.-.-.-.

"Oh god...that was ridiculous," Aomine collapsed on a bench in the boys' change room while waiting for the showers.

Akashi wiped off his sweat but didn't say anything. However, even he was starting to respect the girl a little bit. That training menu wasn't something someone normal could've come up with. She really _did_ observe them and discover their weaknesses.

Murasakibara munched on the candies that Miho had given him after practice, "Nana-chin...she's a nice person. She gave me my favorite candies."

Midorima 'tsked' Murasakibara's eating behavior before wiping his sweat off with a towel. He too, had started to acknowledge that girl as his trainer for now. Despite her looks, she knew what she was doing.

As long as he could improve, that's all that mattered.

.-.-.-.

Momoi and Miho stood in Sanada's office together as they explained some things.

"The practice match I organized was against Onibu Middle School. Their basketball specialized in defense and most of their regular players are in their third year. They are a middle tier school, however they made it to the preliminaries of the Championship last year," Momoi explained with her eyes on her notebook.

Sanada gave a nod, "Momoi-san, did you get notes on the opponent?"

"Because it's a first string match, I did take some notes from the previous videos. They aren't difficult to beat. Skill-wise, Teiko's leading," Momoi stated.

"Very well. Nanase-san, we will put the four first years into the match. Momoi-san, you can leave now," Sanada nodded towards Momoi, who excused herself.

After the door closed with a click, Sanada turned to Miho, "Nanase-san. I saw your training today. Good job."

The girl smiled, "Thank you, sir."

"In the next practice match, I expect to see improvement. If the result satisfies me, I will fully accept you as my Assistant Trainer and you will help me train the entire first string. Understood?" Sanada asked with a stern expression.

"Yes, sir."

.-.-.-.

"Micchan!" Momoi pounced on the girl as she exited the coach's office.

Miho stumbled lightly before choking out, "M-Momoi-san..."

The pink haired girl released her friend before stepping aside, "Micchan, we have been waiting for you!"

Miho looked in confusion before seeing the tanned skin, "Ah... Aomi—D-Dai-chan."

The boy grinned at the nickname, "Yo, Miho."

Momoi was in awe at the exchange of names between the two, "Hey! I didn't know you two were on first name basis! Micchan, call me Satsuki too!"

"Oi, Satsuki, it was apart of the training," Aomine sighed and explained Miho's training regime today.

"Sanada-san said that I needed to find a way to get closer to the players that I was training so...ah. I still don't get that guy's thinking at all..." Miho let out a sigh again.

"We'll Miho did a pretty good job today. I'm pretty sure he'll accept you soon. Akashi even acknowledged you as a trainer," Aomine grinned.

Hearing the boy's words, Miho let out a smile. The guy was so cheerful all the time. It was kind of refreshing. He was also very passionate for basketball—it was infectious.

"Well, anyways, Micchan, call me Satsuki from now on, okay? We are all friends on the same team!" Momoi smiled.

Shaking her head in disbelief of herself, Miho grinned, "Alright, Sa-chan!"

.-.-.-.

Miho watched in awe as the four players that she had trained for the past few weeks successfully defeated their opponents along with their seniors. It was like the fruits of hard work. Also, seeing Aomine grin happily after the win, Miho couldn't help but smile herself.

Over the past few weeks, the bluenette had found herself infatuated with that grin that the blue haired basketball player wore whenever he was playing. Honestly, he looked so happy...

The practice match against Iken middle school ended up with a miraculous victory.

"Good job, guys!" Miho smiled and gave Aomine a high five after they all finished changing.

"Miho, we have practice after this, right?" Akashi turned to the girl as he strode up to her as they were walking back to Teiko.

After a couple weeks of training together, the four first years have fully accepted Miho as an assistant trainer—the red head included.

"Ah, Sei-chan. Yes, coach has an announcement to make today. Participation is mandatory," Miho nodded and put on a small smile.

"Huh? An announcement?" Aomine asked, butting into the conversation between Akashi and Miho.

The bluenette flashed a smile and nodded, "Yup! You'll know when we get back! I also have some flaw reports to give you all on today's match. Even though I'm not your private trainer anymore, I still am mostly in charge of you guys."

That was right. After the four first years have crushed their opponents in their first practice game, Sanada immediately promoted Miho and allowed to her take charge of all the first strings occasionally. However, she was still mainly in charge of the four first years.

"Ah yes, Miho. What was your grade for the latest midterm in math?" Akashi questioned the girl.

It had been a habit for both Miho and Akashi to compare grades. Both of them had rivaling marks and often score a perfect score on all of their tests. Even with basketball, the two tried really hard in academics. In addition to the two, Midorima often also competed, though he has lost to both Akashi and Miho a couple of times.

"Full marks. You, Sei-chan?" Miho replied.

The red haired boy narrowed his eyes, "We're tied, again. Midorima, what was your score?"

The green haired boy pushed up his glasses, "Full marks, as well."

Miho had let out a sigh at this. After a month of the same classes as the green haired boy, she had learned that he was extremely horoscope and fate obsessive, yet he still tried his very hardest to do anything. Miho admired his hard working skills and how he often achieved high grades along with both her and Akashi. Also, Miho felt that it was a lot easier to work with him on the History project now. They had come to understand each other more from basketball.

"What's with all of your obsession with grades? It's just a number!" Aomine protested.

"Mine-chin wouldn't know. He's a basketball idiot," Murasakibara stated while sucking on a lollipop.

Miho sweat dropped a bit at the group of first years. They were all extremely talented, yet the different personalities was a bit...

After many frightening experiences, Miho herself had learned to never disobey Akashi. That boy really had something with his scissors. He seemed to be carrying them everywhere and he would often threaten whoever dares defy him with those scissors. Nonetheless, after Miho learned how to stay on his good side, she felt a lot safer. Akashi was also a very talented Shogi player. Miho had played with him a couple times before while discussing basketball strategies, yet she never managed to win against the guy.

Murasakibara had an extreme sweet tooth. He would eat sweet things wherever he went and one could bribe him very easily with something sweet. Miho often made him homemade cakes and cookies to reward him if he practiced hard. Murasakibara loved the bluenette's cooking. Also, the girl had also learned that the purple haired giant was very childish at times. He literally had the personality of a child and would often swing Miho around in hugs after she brings him sweets. It was...very _sweet_.

As for Aomine and Momoi, Miho had found herself growing fairly attached to the pair. Although she would walk home with Kuroko or Kise sometimes, the bluenette usually took up Momoi's offer of walking home together. Sometimes, when the pink haired manager wasn't around, Miho would walk home alone with Aomine. The two would discuss basketball. The more she talked to the tanned boy, the more she seemed to love the sport.

Miho had also discovered that Momoi was a very talented data collector. Sanada was also impressed by her skills. She would often come to practice with sheets of the opponents' weaknesses and how to crack those weaknesses. Unlike Miho, Momoi's strength was in the offense. She would use her data to attack the players whereas Miho brought out the players' true strength.

The more time she spent with the basketball team, the more she was grateful for Midorima's last name. She was glad that the boy had a last name with a letter ahead of her.

.-.-.-.

"It is officially decided. Aomine Daiki, Akashi Seiijuro, Midorima Shintaro, and Murasakibara Atsushi, from today on, you four will be joining the regulars and wearing your own jerseys. Nanase-san will still help you with your training, however you will all undergo the same training as the rest of the regulars. Also, today we will have a new member join the first strings—Haizaki Shogo," Sanada nodded towards a grey haired boy.

The boy scowled upon seeing the audience, "Haizaki Shogo."

Miho skeptically stared at the boy. He didn't look like a passionate basketball player like Aomine or Kuroko. Yet, she could sense a talent inside the boy as well. However, he seemed quite delinquent like...

"Alright. Dismissed. The four that were promoted to regulars may head to the regulars court to introduce themselves. Haizaki-kun, you will be following Nanase-san's training regime for the first week here. Go!" Sanada blew his whistle and the boys scattered.

Miho walked up the Haizaki and gave the boy a smile, "I'm Nanase Miho and I'll be your trainer for the first week. Please follow me for now."

The boy grinned at Miho, "Oh, having such a cutie train me. What an honor."

Miho glared at the man, "Haizaki-san, you are here to play basketball and I am your trainer. All the things you do will be reported to Coach Sanada. If you do not want to get demoted, please show a more serious attitude."

Haizaki just merely shrugged, "Che, fine. Lead the way, Miss. Trainer."

Miho nodded and led Haizaki to an empty section of the basketball court. She took out her notebook and jotted down some notes on Haizaki's physique.

"Alright. We'll start with some basic testing exercises to test your stamina and body strength. I'll give you five minutes to do this set of exercises. Twenty pushups, thirty-five sit ups, fifteen lunges on each leg, twenty-five squats, and ten crunches. See how many sets you can accomplish in five minutes."

.-.-.-.

"It looks like Miho did her devil training test again, huh?" Aomine snickered as he saw Haizaki practically collapse in the change room after practice.

Midorima pushed up his glasses, "It seems that way."

Akashi stayed silent as he just stared at Haizaki and Murasakibara ate his snacks.

"Who the hell is that girl. Doing all those in five minutes and seeing how many sets I can do? Also, what's with those sprinting exercises?!" Haizaki complained before taking off his shirt.

"It's Nana-chin's way to test your strength as a player," Murasakibara remarked.

"Yeah, we've been through it too," Aomine laughed.

"Che," Haizaki cursed.

.-.-.-.

"These stats are pretty good," Sanada nodded.

Miho let out a sigh, "Yes, but there's one thing that Teiko's evidently lacking. That's stamina. The four first years that just joined the regulars lack stamina as well. They all have extreme skills yet their bodies cannot handle all that stress. If only there was a player who could help them out during the matches..."

"Enough of that. Nanase-san, from now on, you'll be focusing on the players' stamina training. The nationals are coming up soon. Haizaki-kun will be a regular after you polish his skills a bit. We need the strength of stamina during the nationals. There's nothing to think about—focus on a training menu that can improve the stamina of the players quickly. I'll take care of the rest. Understood?" Sanada asked.

Miho nodded, "Yes, sir."

.-.-.-.

_"Five kilometers...no, one hundred laps should be able to settle it. Squats increase their leg strength but that's not my job... Singers run while singing to increase their stamina so that they won't run out of breath during concerts and competitions..."_

"Miho!" a loud voice snapped the blue haired girl back to reality.

Miho looked up and saw the annoyed face of Midorima Shintaro in front of her. Oh...that's right, they were working on the History project.

"I'm sorry, Shin-chan. I was thinking about something. Was is it?" the girl asked.

"I was asking if you have the completed research on the Onin War!" Midorima sighed.

"Oh!" Miho took out a folder with ten to twenty pages of research in it, "Yeah, it's here."

Midorima looked through the notes. They were really well done and through—then again, everything the girl did was. She was a very hardworking individual and Midorima found it amazing how she could ace all of her classes and still manage to come up with such detailed and good training regimes. Also the way she smiled was...

Shaking his thoughts away from the girl, the green haired shooter took out his share of notes, "I have the detailed biography of Oda Nobunaga and the Night Battle of Kawagoe."

The bluenette smiled gratefully and scanned the notes. She could tell that Midorima really spent a lot of time on them. She felt that the two of them actually worked pretty well together and she was glad that her partner never slacked off.

"These are great! Now we need to research um..." Miho looked back at the timeline of the Sengoku period.

"There's the Battle of Okehazama and the destruction of warrior monks. Let's do those next," Midorima suggested.

"Mmm, alright. Which one do you prefer, Shin-chan?" Miho asked.

After the name calling thing that Sanada had requested, the four first years, Momoi, and Miho had stuck with the names that they gave each other.

"I'll do the destruction of warrior monks since that's a part of Nobunaga's history as well," Midorima explained.

"Alright!" Miho smiled, "Let's get to work then."

The girl took out the laptop and started the research again when Midorima paused her, "What were you thinking about before?"

Miho realized that he was talking about when she spaced out, "Ah...coach asked me to focus on stamina training so I was thinking about that. I'll give you a heads up I guess. You'll have to do some loud running around the school today!"

Midorima raised an eyebrow only to have the girl giggle before starting the research.

Training was going to be hell until the national tournament.

.-.-.-.

"One times one equals one, one times two equals two. Now I'm sure that all of you know the multiplication table!" Miho shouted at the first string boys as they stood outside.

"Yes, ma'am!"

"I want you all to continuously rehearse it while running your fifty laps today! If you forget the multiplication table, start over from the beginning. If I see any of you not reciting it, you'll be automatically demoted to the second string. Understood?" Miho announced.

"Y-Yes, ma'am!"

Now, Midorima understood what she had meant from the 'loud running'.

"Alright! After fifteen minutes, you will all have a water break of one minute! I want you all to continue running! Even if you are dead tired, slow down into a jog, but don't stop running! I want you all to push yourself! Now start on my whistle!" Miho told the boys before blowing the whistle.

"One times one equals one! One times two equals two! One times three equals three!"

As the sounds of the boys' shouting echoed across the school field, Miho let out a small smile. Now time to see who broke down first...

.-.-.-.

Sanada stared at the gruesome training that the bluenette was making the team do. He couldn't help but let out a small smile. These training strategies that she came up with... Even if they were downright hilarious, Sanada was sure that they would be effective.

* * *

A/N: Disclaimer - I do not own Kuroko no Basuke or any of the characters.

Phew, another chapter posted. Well, now you all know the story behind all the nicknames that Miho gave to the Generation of Miracles, minus Haizaki. That will be explained in the later chapters.

**jdawgjpn - **Thank you very much for the suggestion! I will still kind of breeze through the part where Kuroko didn't join the Kiseki no Sedai and focus the First Year Arc on the part where Kuroko actually starts to show improvement and where both Miho and Akashi discover his true talent. Also, I think I'm actually starting to love Kuroko and the rest of the Kiseki no Sedai a lot more after writing this story! Thus, I want all of them to be in here! However, thank you for the suggestion and I will definitely make the parts where Kuroko shows his development and practices with Aomine longer and more detailed than the manga. And, well, I still need to fit in all the stuff about Aomine and Miho's past and how Miho changed her love to Midorima. O.O I really should've planned this out more, haha.

Anyways, thank you all so much for reading this! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Please review lots and give any feedback. Those things are always greatly appreciated!

Well, I love you all and thank you all so much!

~Yuvi


	4. 渐强 － Crescendo

**Through My Heart**

_**~First Quarter: Her Talent ~**_

_**第一季: 她的天赋**_

* * *

**Chapter 4：****渐强 ****－ **Crescendo 

Akashi was slightly amused when he saw the rankings for the final test of math's first unit. The ones who placed in the top ten were all members of the basketball club's first string. It's amazing how that girl could influence their math marks as well.

"Sei-chan, all three of us are tied again," a voice called to Akashi from behind.

The boy turned around at the sound of Miho's voice, "Yes. Miho, inspect the top ten names."

"Hm?" not quite understanding, the bluenette looked at the top ten names that were ranked and widened her eyes. They were all apart of the basketball team's first strings!

"...Wow...I can't believe my stamina training led to an increase in math marks as well!" the bluenette giggled before smiling at Akashi.

The red head smiled back before turning around, "We should head back to class."

Nodding, Miho bowed towards Akashi before walking away.

.-.-.-.

"Micchan! Can you believe it? It's the first time that that idiot Dai-chan got placed in the top twenty on a math exam!" Momoi happily bounced over to Miho during their second class of the day—science.

Miho gave a laugh, "Yeah. Our notes must've helped."

"No, I think it was the whole 'shout out the multiplication table while you run' thing! All the first string members got a high mark!" Momoi chattered.

"Hm, so you two noticed it as well," Midorima walked over and joined the conversation.

The bluenette gave a dry laugh, "Well, I guess that training exercise helped in ways more than one..."

"Hn," Midorima nodded before taking his seat behind Miho's desk, "Momoi, we are practicing against Yon Middle School today, am I right?"

The pink haired girl placed a hand under her chin, "Hmm, yep! Yon's a regular participant in the national championships, even though they have never gotten past the quarterfinals before. They specialize on attacks on the inside but they have a slightly weak outside. I think I have the notes on their ace in this note book somewhere..."

Momoi flipped through her notebook looking for the information on Yon Middle School.

"Shin-chan, Haizaki-kun is one of the starting players today. Thus, if any of you see him during lunch or whatnot, please do remind him that if he arrives late today or does not show up at the match, he will immediately be demoted to the second string," Miho requested with an angry expression on her face.

Throughout the past week after Haizaki had joined, the boy had been constantly late for practices and had disobeyed Miho's instructions in more ways than none. The bluenette didn't even bother to familiarize with the grey haired first year like she did with the other four since she was so pissed off at the boy's behavior. However, despite all that, she had to admit that Haizaki's abilities were quite capable and he was a fairly good player. Thus, she used this practice game as a last chance for the grey haired boy.

Both Momoi and Midorima let out a sigh at Miho's warning for Haizaki.

"We'll tell him if we see him," they nodded.

The bluenette smiled gratefully, "Thank you."

.-.-.-.

"One more minute," Miho glared as Haizaki hasn't shown up for the match yet.

"Is this the man you are looking for?" an unfamiliar voice sounded from behind the first strings and Miho turned around.

There stood Haizaki, Coach Sanada and a kind looking old man.

Miho widened her eyes, "Uh...yes, sir..."

Haizaki hurriedly walked over to the first stringers.

Coach Sanada looked at Miho, "All of you, this is the Head Coach Shirogane for those that do not already know. He oversees the entire Teiko Basketball team and he will be training you alongside Nanase-san from now on. Nanase-san, I will overlook the practice match today. You will stay here with Head Coach Shirogane."

The bluenette casted a glance at the old man, who gave her a kind smile, "...Yes, sir. Understood."

"I look forward to working with you, Nanase Miho," the head coach nodded when Miho greeted him with a bow.

"Alright, we'll get going now," Sanada nodded towards Miho and Shirogane and walked away with the first strings.

After they left, Shirogane turned to Miho, "Shall we head to my office?"

The bluenette hurriedly nodded, "Y-Yes, sir!"

The footsteps of the girl and the coach echoed eerily across the hallway. Shirogane led Miho to an office that was across from Sanada's office.

"Please take a seat," the old man gestured to the seat across from the inside of the large desk that was stacked with papers.

Obediently, Miho gingerly sat down and watched as Shirogane followed after closing the door.

Soon, the head coach gave the girl a soft smile, "Sanada tells me that you have been training the boys well."

Nodding, Miho spoke, "I try my best."

"That man trusts you a lot. I, myself can also see why. However, I don't think that you have fully understood your ability."

Miho sat dumbfounded at this, "Um...pardon my rudeness, but I don't quite understand what you mean..."

"You have a gift to see a player's true potential and you can help them achieve that potential. From today on, I want you to report to me instead of Sanada and I will teach you how to utilize your gift for Teiko's victory," Shirogane concluded.

The bluenette looked up, "Y-Yes, sir!"

.-.-.-.

"Mmm...it's just Dai-chan and I today?" Miho asked curiously as she started walking home alone with the tanned skinned boy.

"Yep. Satsuki's discussing stuff with the coach. Oh yeah, what did that Shirogane guy talk to you about today?" Aomine inquired after Teikko had won the practice match against Yon Middle School.

Miho shuddered at the memory. Shirogane was a _very_ strict teacher. He wasn't satisfied with the things that Miho was doing at all. What she was doing right now was just strengthening all of their abilities—that was the job of the coach. Shirogane wanted to bring out the players' true potential from within them. The bluenette was deadly confused and had no clue what he was talking about.

Letting out a sigh, Miho replied, "I'm not even sure myself..."

Aomine raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean, you aren't sure yourself? You don't know what you were doing?"

Miho shook her head, "Nope."

Aomine didn't reply to this. Instead, he laughed.

"Well knowing you, you'll figure it out eventually."

The girl smiled. He was always so optimistic and he always said the right words at the right time. Despite his bad grades, Aomine Daiki was a pretty nice guy.

"Oh yeah, want to go get some popsicles?" Aomine turned to the girl suddenly.

Miho tilted her head in confusion, "Popsicles...?"

.-.-.-.

"Oh wow! These are delicious!" Miho smiled happily as she licked the blue popsicles that Aomine had recommended to her, "What were they called again..."

"Gori Gori Kun Soda popsicles, and they are totally delicious!" Aomine flashed a smile as he ate with Miho.

The bluenette nodded before stopping and raising an eyebrow skeptically, "Even so...why was I the one who paid for them..."

Aomine looked back and chuckled sheepishly, "Ah...well. I kinda ran out of money."

Miho shook her head in disbelief, "I can't believe you used me..."

With that, Aomine laughed and threw an arm around her shoulders, "Hey, it's fine! You seem like the kind that only spends her money on books so it's good to change it up once in a while, right?"

With that, the girl shook her head in displeasure before letting out a sigh, "Only this once..."

With that, Aomine let out a laugh. He was actually pretty surprised that the girl was this nice. At first, he thought she was just plain annoying when she told them that she was going to be training them from that point on. However, after actually doing her training, Aomine felt his noticeable improvement in the sport. Not only that, she also lent him her notes for many tests to ensure that he didn't fail. And boy, did those notes help. Also, every time they talked, she would just make him feel so damned happy—Aomine sweared that there was something completely and utterly wrong with him.

.-.-.-.

"Are you an idiot?!" Midorima's thundering voice jolted Miho as she explained her story, "I understand if you couldn't find the library in your own school—the library _is _in an obscure place. However, the public library is right beside the train station! How could you have gotten lost searching for it!"

The bluenette bowed in apology again. She had showed up half an hour late from the scheduled meeting time. Midorima and her were going to get together on the weekend and put together a section of the History project. However, that obviously didn't turn out too well.

"Che, let's get started before you get lost in your own idiocy," the green haired shooter turned on his heel and headed towards a table.

Miho let out a sigh. For sure, all the respect Midorima had towards her training regimes completely disappeared after this incident. He was back to calling her an idiot. This day was not going well.

First, her father had gotten mad at her for constantly coming back home very late on school days. He had ordered her to quit the basketball club. Miho, however argued that the basketball club was actually helping her grades by aiding her concentration. Of course, that was a big fat lie—not that her father particularly cared. As long as her daughter achieved the perfect grades, all was fine. However, after that he had scolded her about how she was being irresponsible towards her family by constantly not showing up for dinner at night or not participating in the evening family events; Miho didn't even think they had any.

After an hour or so of shouting and abusing, her father had finally let her go out to meet with Midorima. Then, because she took the wrong train and forgot which station to get off at, Miho ended up utterly lost and was completely late for the meet up.

The tension was pretty thick as the two partners worked. Miho let out another sigh as she remembered her father's words. She knew that she should've learned to just let it in from one ear and out the other. However, it was really hard to do so. She couldn't help but dwell on what he had said. Was she really a failure in life?

Miho went to grab her water bottle that she had brought, only to end up grabbing the lid, which she had forgotten to close. Thus, the water spilled all over the table.

The bluenette yelped, "Ah, I'm so sorry!"

"What the hell are you doing?" Midorima let out a sigh as he quickly gathered up all the papers.

The green haired boy had noticed that the girl was acting strange today. She had sighed many times during the past few minutes, and it was also unlike her to make such a clumsy mistake. He wondered what was wrong...

_"What am I thinking? What's wrong with her is none of my business,"_ the boy thought as he finished gathering the papers.

He saw the girl look up from her side as well, "Thank you, Shin-chan. I-I'll go get some paper towels. I'm really sorry."

Midorima let out a curt nod before sitting back down and continuing his research. However, after the girl had not returned after a while, Midorima was starting to get restless.

Eventually he stood up, _"I'm just going to go see if she got lost again."_

He walked towards the unisex washroom and asked from the outside, "Miho?"

When he heard no response, he turned the knob of the door and was startled at the scene before him.

In front in him was a wide-eyed Miho, who was crouched on the ground with evident tears in her eyes.

"Miho," the boy stated in a curt manner. He was more than unsure of how to deal with crying girls—especially one that's usually so happy and strong. Suddenly, he regretted shouting at her when she arrived late.

He saw her quickly wiping her tears away and letting out a forced smile, "Ah, sorry. Something got in my eyes. I'll bring the paper towels back immediately."

He didn't leave or say anything; he just simply stood there and stared. He certainly wanted to comfort or say something to the girl so that the look of despair would disappear from her face. Despite everything, it hurt to see her like this—crying, forcing a smile and looking absolutely broken.

Midorima, however, simply nodded and walked out of the bathroom. He didn't know what to do at all. Usually, he might have just ignored it over all. However it wasn't just anybody that was crying, it was _her_. There was something special about _her_ that nobody else had. Why was his heart aching just from seeing her tears? Why did he want to take her into his arms back then.

Letting out a sigh, Midorima walked away from the area of his confusions and back towards the table. These feelings were pointless. She was just a classmate and he didn't need to meddle in her business. He could pretend he never saw anything—that would be for the best.

.-.-.-.

"I'll walk you home," Midorima offered as the two exited the library.

They had worked non-stop for three hours after the water-spilling incident and had managed to finally complete the mini assignment on the project.

Miho was glad. She was glad that the boy acted like he didn't see anything. Perhaps it would've made her feel better if she had just spilled out all her frustrations to the boy, however she didn't want that.

Miho was never a very selfish person. Ever since childhood she had never complained to her parents about anything. She had never talked back to her father during his lectures and scolding. She never complained about her parents' high demands over grades. She didn't complain when they moved away from her only close friend, Kise Ryota. Even with Kise, Miho rarely talked about her family issues. She tried her best to never show any weakness in front of others. Up until now, nobody has ever actually seen her cry.

Midorima Shintaro was the first to see her break.

It wasn't like it was anything intentional. She was just having a bad day and he just happened to be there to see it. However, it felt like something snapped inside of her the moment he closed the door without saying anything.

Miho knew he wasn't an idiot. She knew he could tell that there was something wrong. She knew that he saw those tears. He wasn't stupid enough to believe that there was actually something in her eyes.

Yet, he just walked away. If it had been anyone else, she was sure that they would've bothered her about it until she told them everything. Nevertheless, he acted like nothing happened. He still called her an idiot for spilling the water afterwards—he didn't meddle at all.

It was like the two felt a mutual understanding the moment their eyes met in that washroom. It was like something clicked.

She was glad. There were no words to describe how glad she was that he walked away that instant. It wasn't time for her to break down completely yet. She still had to wait before she could truly allow herself to rely on someone. She felt that Midorima understood that. Despite his usually insulting remarks and snide comments, Miho understood that the green haired boy was a very kind person underneath.

Smiling after they finished the project, Miho shook her head to the questions, "It's alright. I'll manage on my own."

The green haired boy narrowed his eyes, "You will get lost on the way home."

Seeing as he had made his decision, Miho let out a sigh and nodded, "Alright...thank you, Shin-chan."

The walk back home was fairly quiet. The silence was awkward indeed. Miho could tell that the boy wanted to ask something, yet she wasn't quite sure what.

Finally, not being able to take it anymore, Miho spoke up, "D-Do you want to ask me something?"

Midorima stared at the girl for a while before letting out a sigh, "Follow me."

Unsure where he was going, Miho obediently followed the boy. Eventually the two arrived at a basketball court. She should've figured.

There was a shed near the court and Midorima had entered it and came out with a basketball.

The boy proceeded to taking his sweater off and starting a light dribble in the court.

Miho watched silently as the boy dribbled and shot the ball from the three-pointer line. Of course, the ball zoomed in the hoop easily.

Suddenly, Miho widened her eyes as she stared at Midorima.

_"He's shooting them so easily...Is it possible..."_

"Shin-chan!" Miho shouted while running over to the center of the court, "Shoot from where I currently am."

The boy widened his eyes. He had specialized in shooting from the three-point line. However, he had never challenged his abilities to the center of the court. It seemed like it was a good idea to bring the girl here after all.

Nodding, the green haired shooter walked over to the center of the court and positioned himself for a shooting stance.

Narrowing his eyes at the basket, Midorima released the ball. He watched as it flew up high and bounced on the rim of the hoop. It rolled around the hoop for a bit before it fell in.

The shot had succeeded.

Miho saw the shooting and she finally understood the meaning of Shirogane's words.

Of course—it all made sense now.

"Strengthen your arms. Lift some weights at the gym everyday. Don't start off too heavy. Gradually increase the amount. The more pressure your arms can handle, the more easily you can perform that move. Also, stamina is dead important. If you lack stamina, you will not be able to do that shot many times. However, know your capabilities. Don't tire yourself out," Miho started listing the things that the boy could do to train himself, "And...try it again. I want to see it again."

Midorima was in awe. Seeing his shot just fly through the air and into the basket like that...he didn't think it was actually possible. He knew that he would be able to perform the half court shot someday, yet he had thought that he needed more practice before he could actually do it. Yet, with a strict order, the girl had overseen the ball flying into the basket.

It was almost like a miracle.

Not letting this chance pass, Midorima gripped the ball again and replayed his previous actions in his head. He would make sure that the ball could fly through the hoop perfectly by the end of the day.

.-.-.-.

Flawless. Beautiful, graceful and utterly impeccable.

Nanase Miho stared wide-eyed as the ball made a beautiful arc in the air and cleanly swiped through the basket. It was amazing how he could accomplish this in a mere week.

At first, the bluenette had undoubtedly felt annoyance towards the horoscope obsessive boy. However, that annoyance gradually transformed into admiration.

She felt like he was perfect. He always strived for excellence and kept to his motto at all times. Man proposes, god disposes. Miho sometimes wondered if Midorima was the perfect example of this. Always depended on luck yet never ever slacking off either. Even when others decided to take a moment of rest, Midorima still worked his hardest during practices.

She knew that he had often stayed after practices to practice his shots. However, his hard work showed off even more this week. In just a mere week, the shot that Miho had seen was perfected. There wasn't even anything to comment about when he had gone way past her expectations.

He turned towards her from the half court line, "Well?"

'Well what?' Miho had wanted to say. There was absolutely nothing to say about this kind of achievement. It was true that he was indeed talented—yet she knew he also worked hard for this.

Unsure, the girl put on a small smile, "Flawless, Shin-chan."

He seemed displeased by her reply. Of course, he wanted to know what else to improve on. He didn't want a praise from her—he wanted more tips for improvement.

"Hm...well. It's beautiful and all I can say at the moment is for you to keep practicing it! It's great!" Miho laughed.

Midorima let out a sigh, "Whatever. That was pointless feedback."

"Stop being so hard on yourself and accept praise for once, okay? I'll treat you to popsicles today for completing the shot," Miho suggested.

Midorima simply turned and faced the basket again, "I'll pass."

Miho was annoyed at this. She understood that he wanted to do his best at everything, yet he should allow himself more leeway in things sometimes.

Irritated, the girl walked up to him and snatched the ball away from his hands, "I'm going to lock the gym now, and you _must_ leave."

Seeing that she had her mind set on it, Midorima let out a sigh and helped the girl put the ball backs into the storage room.

"Alright, milkshakes or popsicles?" Miho asked after the two finished cleaning.

Midorima raised an eyebrow before turning away from her with a displeased expression on his face, "I don't need any. I'm going home."

The girl was about to continue pressing when she paused suddenly. Why was she so determined to buy him something? It wasn't like it mattered too much, right? This was pointless.

Huffing out a sigh, Miho decided the leave the boy and head to Shirogane's office to tell him of Midorima's achievement.

Following Midorima's half court shot, Aomine, Murasakibara, Akashi and Haizaki's skills became more polished and each rose to another level after Miho trained with them.

And so, the days until the national tournament slowly crept by.

.-.-.-.

~ **_End of the First Quarter ~_**

* * *

A/N: I do not own Kuroko no Basuke or any of the characters.

And thus concludes the first part of Through My Heart, the prequel. This will be the shortest part of this story, by the way, so don't worry. There probably will be four parts to this. The next part is what I call the 'Kuroko Arc'. It's where Kuroko joins the team! Yay! I absolutely adore the blue haired phantom so I will love writing the next part.

Anyways, sorry for not updating yesterday! I was planning out the prequel and stuff. I have actually decided that I will focus more on the prequel than the actual 'Through the Hoop' story. This is mainly because I want to settle all the confusion between the AominexMiho stuff that's coming up in the actual story. And also, the promise between Midorima and Miho that was mentioned in the previous chapters would also be cleared up a bit.

However, that being said, there was almost next to no romance in the first part of the prequel...! O_O. Haha, well except for this chapter. This is actually when Miho first starts to realize Midorima's kindness and stuff. Also, Midorima is pretty dense when it comes to these things, so he won't actually realize his feelings until something pretty big happens. Also, I just found it pretty funny how Aomine and Midorima were in the same class in their second year in Teiko. It's like it was born for a love triangle to happen. Haha.

Well, other than that, thank you all for the support you have given me and this story! I also decided to add a cover for this! Yay! The cover is basically Miho with her sharp blue eyes, observing... Well, something like that. Well, once again, thank you all for the feedback! **Please keep reviewing!** I love reading all of your reviews, so please review! They give me motivation and I _definitely_ update faster with more reviews.

And that concludes my ramble. Thanks for reading and please review!

I love you all!

~Yuvi


	5. Extra : 生日快乐！－ Happy Birthday！

**Through My Heart**

**~First Quarter - Extra Chapter!~**

* * *

**Chapter 4.5 – 生日快乐！－ ****Happy Birthday！**

One would call Nanase Miho a true friend. She was a friend who never forgot anyone's birthday, ever. This year, at Teiko Middle School, Miho met Momoi and the other regulars from the Teiko Basketball Team. Meeting new people means making new friends, thus celebrating numerous birthdays.

.-.-.-.

_~Midorima Shintarou - July 7__th _

"Momoi, Miho, good morning," Midorima walked into the classroom with his usual lucky item and bandages on his left hand.

The two girls stopped their chat and looked up at Midorima.

"Good morning, Midorin!"

"Shin-chan, good morning," both of them greeted respectively.

Instead of sitting down, the green haired shooter let out a sigh, "Are both of you free on July 7th?"

Momoi tilted her head, "Hm? Yes, why?"

To this, Midorima let out another sigh, "My parents are organizing a party to celebrate my birthday and have ordered me to invite at least five people."

Miho let out a small smile, "I'll go. My parents are going out of town this weekend so I'll be alone at home anyhow."

Momoi piped up as well, "Woot! Celebrating Midorin's birthday! Count me in!"

Midorima shook his head in annoyance, "Hmph, don't get too excited. This whole idea is just absurd."

"Who else are you going to invite?" Miho asked.

"Akashi, Aomine and Murasakibara," Midorima stated.

Momoi sweat dropped, "Midorin has no friends outside of basketball..."

Miho shook her head at the statement, _"Now that she mentions it...I don't either..."_

Midorima grumbled and walked away, "Things like that are useless."

After the boy walked away, Momoi excitedly turned to the bluenette, "Micchan, what are you going to get him for a present?"

Miho shook her head, "I have no clue...maybe his lucky item for the day, or something like that..."

Momoi's face paled as well, "Yeah...you're right. What would he even want..."

The two girls let out a long sigh. This was going to be one tedious birthday party...

.-.-.-.

"Sei-chan...what are you getting Shin-chan for his birthday...?" Miho asked the red haired vice-captain after practice.

"Hmm...what I'm getting Midorima...?" Akashi thought for a while before turning to face Miho, "I'm...not quite sure about that yet."

It was actually the first time Miho saw the boy looking unsure about something. The girl sweat dropped before giving a small nod.

"Ah...well, thanks anyways," Miho nodded.

"Miho," Akashi called her as she was about to leave.

The girl paused and turned back, "Hm? What's wrong?"

"Let's go shopping for Midorima's birthday present after I change," Akashi suggested.

Miho guess it couldn't hurt, thus she smiled and nodded, "Alright...!"

Once Akashi came out of the change room, the two set off to find the green haired boy a birthday present.

"Let's head to a horoscope and zodiac shop first," Akashi suggested and smiled at the girl.

Miho nodded, "Hm, alright."

"Welcome!" the shop owner smiled at the two as they entered.

Both Akashi and Nanase gave a small greeting back before looking around in the shop. The entire shop was filled with talismans, lucky items, lucky stones and other fate related items.

The two first years looked around silently, wondering what in the world would actually interest Midorima.

"Sei-chan, do you know what the others are going to buy?" Miho asked, picking up a necklace with a big shell hanging from it.

When Akashi didn't answer, the girl turned and saw him holding a silver ring with a large amethyst stone on it.

"Pretty..." a gasp escaped the girl's mouth subconsciously.

Akashi turned and stared at Miho for a while, "Try it on."

"Huh?" Miho tilted her head in confusion and blushed when the red haired boy grabbed her right hand and slipped the ring on her fourth finger.

He gripped her wrist and brought it beside her blue hair and a smile plastered on his face, "It suits you very well. I will get this ring."

Miho widened her eyes, "H-Huh? W-Wait, Sei-chan, I don't ne—"

The bluenette shut her mouth when she saw the look on Akashi's face. She knew better than to argue with him when he had that look. If she said anything else, he would probably just get angry at her.

In the end, the two walked out of the shop with a new ring on Miho's hand.

The bluenette let out a small sigh, _"How did it turn out like this..."_

.-.-.-.

_"How did it turn out like this...!?" _Miho twitched as she stood in front of the door or her house with many shopping bags in her hands.

After the ring, Akashi had taken the girl to several clothing store to look for something for Midorima to wear. However, in the end, he just ended up picking more outfits for Miho.

By the end of the gift shopping spree, both of them have gained no progress in the gift, but instead, Miho gained many new accessories and clothes. Akashi had told her to 'dress yourself up better.'

Letting out a sigh, Miho walked into her house and carried the bags to her room. Despite everything, she had to admit that Akashi's tastes were quite...sophisticated and elegant. The clothing that she had bought were all very simple, yet pretty at the same time. Her favorite was still the dark amethyst ring that now lay on her right hand's fourth finger. Akashi wasn't lying—it did suit her pretty well.

"Well, that was almost a complete waste of time. I still don't have a present for Shin-chan..." Miho sighed loudly again whilst reminding herself to never go out shopping with Akashi ever again.

Well, she would try again tomorrow, she guessed.

.-.-.-.

"Hmm...? Mido-chin's birthday present...? I'll bring him lots of sweets~," Murasakibara nodded sleepily as he answered Miho's question.

The blue haired girl let out a sigh. What did she even expect from Murasakibara...

Moving on, she headed towards Aomine, "Dai-chan...what are you getting for Shin-chan's birthday?"

Aomine thought for a while, "Oh, I'll get him a sports gift card."

Miho didn't know what else she expected from Aomine as well.

.-.-.-.

Miho was walking home from school that day with a frown on her face. Midorima's birthday party was tomorrow and she still didn't have a present.

At that moment, a man came up to him, "Hey, young lady! Would you like to enter a draw? The grand prize is two tickets to a hot spring in the mountains!"

Nanase sighed, "Well, alright I guess..."

"Right this way, please!" the man led her to a booth where she spun the spinner and a blue ball rolled out.

"Um..." Miho looked at the man with confusion, "What's blue?"

The man perked up, "Blue is the special prize! We currently have a Oha Asa lucky item campaign! These are the rare items that will give luck for the whole year!"

Miho suddenly felt lightheaded. Capricorn's horoscope must've been first today...

.-.-.-.

"Happy birthday, Shin-chan!"

"Midorin! Happy birthday!"

Midorima stared at the two girls who were beaming at him as they stood by the door of his house.

He let out a sigh, "Come in."

Akashi, Murasakibara, and Aomine were already inside. They were playing Super Smash Bros Brawl on Midorima's Wii.

"Shin-chan, you have a Wii?!" Miho gasped as she stared at the green haired boy. She honestly could not imagine him playing on a Wii.

"That's Minori's," Midorima motioned towards a small girl, sitting in the living room.

Momoi widened her eyes, "Ah, so that's Midorin's little sister! She's so cute!"

The pink haired girl immediately rushed over to the small green haired girl and played with her.

Miho stared nervously and gently closed the door, "Um...Happy birthday. Here's your present."

The girl passed the present bag to the green haired shooter. For some reason, she felt embarrassed standing at the entranceway of his house alone. It was fine with Momoi, but now it felt just plain awkward.

Midorima seemed to feel the same.

He pushed up his glasses and accepted the present, "Thank you."

There was an awkward silent between the two. Miho felt her blood quickening.

_"Why am I this nervous...? It's not like it's just me here..." _Miho thought to herself before she gave the boy a smile.

"Well, thanks for inviting me!"

"Yeah..." Midorima nodded, "Don't just stand there. Come inside."

The girl gave a weak nod and stepped inside the house formally, "Pardon the intrusion..."

Midorima rubbed his temples lightly, "It's fine. Momoi barged in to play with my sister and the rest barged in to play on Minori's Wii."

Miho took off her shoes and gave the boy a small smile, "Well, then I'll be polite to show your parents that your friends aren't just a group of delinquents."

Midorima stared at the girl for a while before turning away with a light blush on his face, "F-Fine. Do what you want."

The girl gave a small nod and followed Midorima to the kitchen where all his relatives and Momoi were.

Miho paled at the scene before her.

"I'll prepare some dishes, Midorima-san!" Momoi happily announced.

Both Midorima and Miho looked at each other. Oh god... Aomine had warned them before that Momoi's cooking was absolutely disastrous.

Not wanting his kitchen to be ruined, Midorima stepped in, "Momoi, Aomine's making a ruckus with the Wii. Can you go deal with that idiot?"

The pink haired girl's expression immediately changed at this, "That A_ho_mine! He needs to learn some manners in other people's houses!"

With that, she stormed off.

Midorima's mother sighed at her son, "Shintarou, that was rude."

Miho laughed at this, "Midorima-san, it's fine. It's better to keep Sa-chan out of the kitchen..."

"Hm?" Midorima's mother turned to look at Miho, "Who's this, Shintarou?"

"Nanase Miho. She's...a classmate," the boy stated after some hesitation.

_"Ouch, classmate zoned..."_ Miho thought to herself.

"I see, it's great to see that Shintarou has some friends! He's always so serious about his horoscopes and fate that we were worried!" the green haired lady smiled at Miho.

Miho gave her a small smile back, "Thank you. Do you need any help on the dishes?"

Midorima's mother turned to her son again, "Geez, Shintarou. Show your friends around the house or something. It's bad to let them help with the food when they are guests!"

Midorima pushed up his glasses, "Alright."

Sighing like this was the worst thing that's ever happened to him, Midorima led Miho back to the living room, where the three boys and Momoi were playing Smash Bros Brawl—well, Momoi and Aomine were. Murasakibara was eating sweets and Akashi was observing carefully.

Miho walked over and saw that Aomine was playing as Ike and Momoi as Zelda.

"W-Who's winning..." Miho raised an eyebrow as she sat down beside Akashi.

"Momoi is doing very well against Aomine. But Aomine will win this round," the red haired boy stated.

Miho tilted her head, "How do you know?"

"I always win, so I am always right," Akashi replied confidently.

"Sei-chan, did you win before?" Miho asked.

Akashi gave the girl a glare.

The bluenette sweat dropped, "I think that was an redundant question, huh."

"Akachin played as Marth and destroyed everyone..." Murasakibara stated.

Miho sweat dropped again. She could totally imagine that...

Midorima let out a sigh, "For goodness sakes...why is my team filled with a bunch of idiots...?!"

The green haired boy slipped out of the house when nobody was looking and grabbed a basketball. Since the entire house was filled with idiots, he might as well add in some practice...

.-.-.-.

"Yes! I won against Satsuki!" Aomine cheered.

Momoi grumbled, "A-Again! Micchan, lets both go against Ahomine this time!"

Akashi got tired of just watching.

The red haired vice-captain let out a sigh, "How about I join in too?"

Both Aomine and Momoi sweat dropped. Akashi completely beat them last time...

"We'll draw the teams," Akashi suggested.

Everyone nodded. There was no way they could refuse Akashi anyhow...

In the end, Miho and Akashi ended up on one team while Aomine and Momoi ended up on another. While drawing the slips of paper, Akashi noticed the ring on Miho's right hand. After seeing her wear the piece of jewelry that he bought, a small smirk plastered on his face.

"Something wrong, Sei-chan?" Miho tilted her head innocently and ask.

The red head smile, "Nothing. Let's start."

The game was completely one sided. Even though Miho was horrible at attacking and died continuously, Akashi completely defeated Momoi and Aomine. It didn't help that Momoi and Aomine had quite a few self-destructs from bashing at each other.

In the end, Momoi and Aomine sprawled on the ground, exhausted.

Akashi nodded, "The win was a given."

The bluenette sweat dropped at the sight before noticing something wrong. They were at Midorima's house...so where _was_ he?

"Um...have you guys seen Shin-chan?" Miho asked.

Momoi sat up, "Now that you mention it..."

"Mido-chin left the house a while ago," Murasakibara chewed on a piece of cake as he stated.

"Eh?!"

Miho stood up, "I-I'll go look for him. You guys continue playing...!"

With that, the blue haired girl put on her shoes and ran out of the house as well.

Momoi stared after her worriedly, "Will she be okay...? Wouldn't she get lost...?"

Aomine let out a sigh, "That idiot... Running out when she has no sense of direction."

Akashi stared at the door before turning back towards the television, "She'll be fine. It's concerns Midorima after all..."

"Hm?" everyone stared at the vice-captain in confusion.

The red head let out a small knowing smile.

.-.-.-.

The bluenette let out a sigh. Perhaps running off by herself was a pretty bad idea. Yet something about running away from one's own birthday party irked her.

Suddenly, the girl heard a familiar sound—the dribbling of balls.

She followed the sound and arrived at street basketball court and saw a familiar green haired shooter there.

She should've known that he would be practicing basketball on his own birthday...

Even though it was quite strange and annoying in a way, the bluenette admired the boy's hard work. Even when everyone was dead tired from the practices, Midorima would always still be there, practicing.

Slipping some coins in a vending machine, Miho bought some of Midorima's favorite drink, the red bean soup. Smiling, she walked into the court and picked up the ball after it rolled to her.

Midorima looked up and widened his eyes, "Miho..."

The girl tossed him the drink, "Geez, you're practicing on your own birthday. Take a break. Your parents are preparing the food. You should be there when the dinner starts.

Midorima opened the drink and took a sip while walking towards the girl, "I'll head back now."

Miho smiled happily before turning to the boy, "Shin-chan!"

"Yes?"

"Will you teach me how to shoot your three pointer someday?"

The boy paused before a he grunted, "You'll never be able to learn it."

The girl pouted, "What? Why?"

"Morons aren't able to learn anything,," the green haired shooter stated whilst grabbing the ball from Miho's hands and shooting another basket.

Miho narrowed her eyes, "Shin-chan's calling me a moron...?"

Midorima let out a sigh from this, "Fine. I'll teach you."

Miho's eyes widened, "Really? Promise?"

Annoyed, Midorima turned around and pinched Miho's cheek, "Yes, now stop complaining!"

"Ouch..." the bluenette rubbed her cheek before turning to the green haired shooter, "then it's a promise. You'll teach me someday, right, Shin-chan?"

He placed his hand on her head, "Yeah, a promise."

Seeing Miho's excited and happy face, Midorima was secretly glad that his parents decided to throw this birthday party.

* * *

A/N: I do not own Kuroko no Basuke or any of the characters.

Eek! I have no idea what the heck I just wrote! To be honest, I just planned it to be a little something to lighten up the entire story a bit. I was actually going to do both Shin-chan and Dai-chan's birthdays, but just Shin-chan's turned out to be 2500 words ish! Oh god... Also, ugh I think I made Shin-chan and Sei-chan too OOC here. In the Kuroko no Basuke game, they say that Akashi is more of a motherly kind person-ish - well, this was from Wikia, so I have no clue. Thus, I made him really weird in this... Sigh...

Well, despite everything, I hope you guys enjoyed the mini side story! Also, please tell me if you would like me to do Aomine's as well. I'm definitely going to add a birthday one for Miho and Akashi since well, Miho's birthdate is the 25th of December and Akashi's is the 20th... And, also, I really love writing these Kiseki no Sedai out of school interaction things. It's pretty fun!

Well, once again, thank you all so much for the reviews! Please keep reviewing! The more reviews I get, the faster I update! ^_^ This is especially true after school starts and hell starts to befall me. My parent's are actually very much like Miho's father...thus, I will have to be a good girl and study a lot. -_-

Well, either way, I love writing this and I love reading the reviews you guys give me so much! So, please keep reviewing and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

I love you all!

~Yuvi


	6. 练习 － Practice

~**_Second Quarter – Kuroko's Basketball~_**

**_ 第二季_****_: 黑子的篮球_**

**Through My Heart**

* * *

**Chapter 5 – 练习－ ****Practice**

With ups and downs, the Teiko Middle School basketball team managed to secure their victory at the National Championships at the end of August. Akashi was named the vice-captain of the team. With summer almost at its end and the approach of a new season, a new talent is discovered in the Teiko Basketball club.

"Mura Shunsuke. And that is it for those that made it to the second string this time around. For those of you that didn't make it, work hard for the next time!" Coach Watanabe announced to the third strings.

Amidst the complaints, a sense of regret and hopelessness washed over Kuroko Tetsuya as he clenched his fists and remembered his promise to his friend.

_I finally got a uniform! I'm still on the bench though, and I won't get to play in matches very much. I want to work hard and become a starter. How're you doing, Kuroko? I heard that Teiko's really strong, but if you work hard, I'm sure you can do it. I believe in you._

That's right, there was no time for regret, he must continue practicing at his very best. He also had that promise with that strong willed girl from before.

_"I'll see you in the first string some day!"_

There was too much to lose if he didn't make it. Thus, Kuroko gathered up his courage and strength and continued with the basketball team. He _will_ stand on the court in a match someday.

.-.-.-.

"Practicing overtime? I don't mind, but...make sure to return the key, and go home when the school closes," the coach replied to the blue haired boy's request.

"Thank you very much...!" Kuroko bowed.

With that, he gathered up his things and headed back to the gym. He worked on his footwork, dribbling, and his shooting. He was determined to advance a step once the next test came.

.-.-.-.

_Tap, tap, tap. _

Miho's footsteps echoes in the gym as she walked over to where the regulars were practicing.

"Sei-chan, Nijimura-kun," the girl called out.

The captain and vice-captain of the Teiko basketball team looked up and saw Miho in front of them, holding a clipboard and a pencil.

"What is it, Miho?" Akashi asked first.

The girl tapped her chin with the pencil and let out a small smile, "Shirogane-san and Sanada-san would like to meet with us after practice. Come to the head coach's office immediately after practice."

Both Akashi and Nijimura nodded before the girl walked off. After the nationals ended, the bluenette seemed to be appearing less and less at the regulars' court. Even so, the training just got more and more gruesome with the head coach's training regimes. The regulars started missing the blue haired girl. Not only because of the training menus, but also because she brought a livelier atmosphere in the regulars' court when she was there.

After she left, Aomine let out a displeased sigh, "I thought she was going to take over the training for today."

Midorima pushed up his glasses, "Don't be ridiculous. It doesn't matter who does the training. As long as we improve, then it's fine."

Even as he spoke those words, he could feel a sense of longing for the girl to be here as well. When had everyone gotten so attached to her?

Haizaki was the only one who wasn't too bothered, "Who cares?"

Akashi remained silent. It seemed like that girl was bothering the regulars more than she should have. Perhaps that is why the head coach ordered her to stay away for a while.

Letting out a sigh, the red haired vice-captain stood up and got ready for the practice.

It was for the best. It would be bad if anything started interfering with the team's policy of Ever Victory.

.-.-.-.

"So, I'd like each of your opinions regarding the National Championships," Shirogane stated as Nanase, Akashi, and Nijimura gathered in his office alongside Sanada.

The replies from everyone was the same, "We're missing something."

"I see you're all thinking the same thing as me. We won, but just barely. We have risky moments when the opponents launch a surprise attack. What I feel that we need is a trump card player—someone who can conveniently change the flow of the game when we want," Shirogane concluded.

"Other than that, keep practicing. Akashi-kun and the rest of the first years are still unstable at time. Keep strengthening your stamina and such. The head coach will be in charge of you for the time being," Sanada added.

"Alright, that is all. You three are all dismissed," Shirogane nodded.

Akashi and Nijimura bowed before leaving. Miho, however stayed behind.

"Head coach Shirogane...I think I know someone who can have that trump card effect. I saw it when I was in the third string. That player has skills that are completely different from the rest. He's like a shadow," Miho cautiously explained.

Shirogane paused, "And who is this player you are talking about?"

"...Kuroko Tetsuya. If possible, I'd like to observe the third string practices until the next test. I'd like to try and discover some developments that he could take..." Miho finished.

The room was silent before Shirogane turned towards Sanada, "What is your opinion on this, Sanada?"

The glasses man opened his mouth to speak, "I trust Nanase's instincts. She was the one that brought out the true potentials of those first years. ...I'd like to see what she could accomplish with this Kuroko Tetsuya."

Shirogane nodded, "Alright. For the month of September, Nanase, you are in charge of monitoring the third string. I will contact Coach Watanabe of this."

The girl brightened, "...Yes! Thank you very much!"

"...Nanase. Don't do anything you'll regret later on," Shirogane warned as the girl opened the door to leave.

The bluenette paused before laughing it off, "Haha, of course not. Its just observation, right? Thank you, I'll get going now."

After the door closed, Shirogane stared hostilely at the door, "Sanada, do you trust her?"

The coach of the first string was silent for a while before nodding, "Yes, I do."

Shirogane was silent at this, _"I don't."_

.-.-.-.

"You'll be watching over the third string? What the hell?" Aomine glared at the girl as she took a seat between Akashi and Midorima at the cafeteria.

Akashi silently pondered the girl's decision. Why would she head to the third string all of a sudden? It made no sense.

Miho took out her lunch and let out a secretive smile, "Mm...I have my reasons, I guess."

"You haven't been training with the regulars lately, either," Midorima pointed out.

"Oh that...well that was Shirogane-san's decision. He _is_ the head coach so it should only be obvious for him to train you guys. I'm only an assistant trainer after all," Miho explained and opened her lunch.

Akashi took a look, "That is a very complete bento you've got there, Miho."

Miho smiled at the red haired boy, "Thank you very much, Sei-chan. I made it myself."

"It's great that you don't have Satsuki's cooking skills," Aomine shuddered at the thought.

The girl smiled at the comment and before long, she found herself laughing alongside all the boys. Suddenly, a dreaded thought overcame the blue haired girl.

"Oh god...I just realized... All the friends I made this year are a part of the basketball team..."

Well, it seemed like before she knew it, she completely fell in love with the sport as well. What an ironic fate.

After she finished her lunch, Miho stood up and packed her bento, "Well, I guess I'll get going now. See you guys later, I guess."

"Yeah! See ya, Miho," Aomine waved as she walked away.

Miho smiled before letting out a sigh. She felt that she needed to make more friends before she became completely obsessed with basketball...

"Nanase-san," a voice jumped out from behind her.

The girl widened her eyes and turned around. This hadn't happened to her for a while now...

"K-K-K-K-Kuroko-kun!" Miho shrieked, her face pale, "When did you get here..."

The boy had a blank expression on his face, "I was here for a while already."

Miho sweat dropped, "Of course...well I haven't seen you in a while now, Kuroko-kun."

"Yes, you've been busy with the first string lately. I saw you eating lunch with them today," Kuroko stated.

"Y-Yeah... Oh yeah, I'll be going to the third string to observe you guys for the month of September!" Miho grinned happily at the thought of spending more time with the blue haired boy.

Kuroko's expression was as unreadable as ever, "Really? Why?"

Well, she certainly couldn't tell him that she was observing him...

"Well, I'm just polishing up my training skills a bit..." Miho lied.

She wanted the ground to swallow her after that lie. It was so obvious that is was a lie that she thought it was funny.

Kuroko kept his ever-blank expression before nodding, "Alright, I'll see you at practice then, Nanase-san."

Miho debated it for a while before nodding, "Alright! I'll see you, Te-chan!"

Kuroko stared at the girl as she waved and walked into a classroom. She gave him a nickname...

.-.-.-.

"If you don't already know me, I am Nanase Miho and I will working with Coach Watanabe and to help you guys for the next month! I look forward to working with you all!" the bluenette remade her introduction and gave a bow.

Watanabe let out a small sigh. He had no idea why she was here in the third string again. He never really trusted that girl very much. It seemed strange to him for someone like her to be able to properly train the players so well. He often wondered if she had a hidden motive. But then again, she was only a middle schooler.

The practice went along pretty smoothly. Miho made sure to observe Kuroko carefully. He was...in one word, transparent. She wasn't quite sure what he was. There definitely was something hidden within him and she could only hope that it comes out by the end of September. One month was her time period.

"Te-chan? You're staying for practice?" Miho questioned after all the third strings left the gym.

There had been rumors of a ghost appearing in the third strings' gym lately and Miho started to wonder if the cause of the rumor was just Kuroko practicing. He _did_ give off a very ghostly vibe after all...

Kuroko nodded, "Yes."

"Mind if I watch?" the bluenette grinned.

Kuroko stared at her for a while before shaking his head, "I wouldn't mind."

Smiling, the girl sat down and watched the boy practice. He was extremely hardworking—she had to admit. Suddenly, she wanted to help him make the first string as quickly as possible. Hard work should always pay off, that is what Miho believed.

.-.-.-.

The practice for the first strings have finally just wrapped up. Aomine let out a sigh. It wasn't as lively as before without Miho there. Just having her there cheered the boy up enormously and make him want to show her his best.

Stretching, Aomine took a look at the first gym. There were still a lot of people practicing overtime and they took up the whole gym. He wanted to add in a bit more practice before going home, though...

"Hm, Aomine-kun. You're not staying behind for extra practice today?" Momoi asked the blue haired ace as he walked out of the gym.

Aomine let out a sigh, "Well, I was going to...but lately more and more guys have been doing that."

He pointed towards the gym where the players were all practicing their footwork and other skills, "I heard the fourth auditorium used by the third string was empty, so I'm going to go there."

"...What?!" Momoi exclaimed, shocked.

"What's with that reaction...?" Aomine raised an eyebrow. Was it not normal to go somewhere else to practice?

"Well, I've heard that lately...a ghost has been appearing there," Momoi replied with great superstition.

Aomine put on a horrifying expression of disbelief before making idle chat with the other boys in the gym.

Momoi sweat dropped, "I'm telling the truth! Night after night, even though no one's there, you can hear sounds of shoes squeaking and balls bouncing. Micchan and I were walking home one day and we both heard it!"

Aomine laughed, "Miho's never told me anything about it. Anyways, I'm sure it's just a joke. There's no way that's true!"

"Wai..." Momoi started to complain.

"By the way, you're kind of grossing me out, calling me 'Aomine-kun'," Aomine stated blankly at his childhood friend, "Even Miho calls me 'Dai-chan' nowadays."

"Everyone knows that Micchan's doing it because of training...If I call you 'Dai-chan', people are going to talk. Micchan even suspected us dating at first..." Momoi explained.

"Well, whatever. I'll get going now," Aomine sighed and headed towards the fourth auditorium.

On the way there, the boy shook his head in disbelief, "How can there be a ghost that plays basketball? Even if there were, I'll just play one-on-one with him!"

Aomine neared the gym and saw the lights one, "See, there are lights one, so it must be a member of the team."

He pushed open the door, "He-llo."

However, his greeting was acknowledged with silence. The entire gym was empty with nobody in it.

Aomine jumped and sweated massively at the sight, _"What...! Wait, wait, for real?! Really a gho—no..! I'm sure some guy just finished practicing... But wasn't there noise right up until I opened the door...?"_

While Aomine was panicking, Kuroko walked up towards the boy, "Um... Who are you?"

The ace of the Teiko basketball team jumped and hid in the corner of the gym. No...this was impossible...really a ghost?! What was going to become of him?!

"Ah? Oh. Aomine-kun?" Kuroko asked after he noticed the features of the boy.

After he had practiced for a while, Miho had offered to buy the boy a drink. Even after refusing, the girl insisted and ran out for the vending machines. When the door of the gymnasium opened again, Kuroko had expected it to be Miho. But instead, a tanned blue haired boy entered. Kuroko was extremely confused until he recognized him to be the famous Aomine Daiki that made the first strings in his first year.

Aomine turned around at the calling of his name, "Huh?"

A small boy with light blue hair and an unreadable expression greeted him.

Just then, the gymnasium doors opened again, "Te-chan, there were no more waters so I got you an orange ju—huh...? Dai-chan, why are you shivering in the corner there?"

Both Aomine and Kuroko turned and saw Miho standing at the door with a confused expression on her face.

"Ah, Nanase-san."

"...Miho?!"

The girl blinked before recognizing the situation and closing the door, "Um...what's going on here?"

.-.-.-.

"Hahaha, what the heck?! So before Miho came, nobody noticed you were here because your presence was too weak?" Aomine laughed as Kuroko explained the ghost story.

Miho sweat dropped, "I thought it was something like that..."

"Aomine-kun, you're laughing too much," Kuroko stated.

Aomine looked at Kuroko suddenly, "Wait...have I told you your name before? And...why are you even _here,_ Miho?"

Kuroko smiled gently, "...You're famous. The first year who was made a starting player on the first string team. Not only that, Nanase-san has told me about you when we walked home together."

Miho nodded, "Yup! And, I'm here because I wanted to observe Te-chan practice!"

"Oh...So Miho calls you Te-chan, huh? What's your real name?" Aomine asked.

Kuroko looked confused, "I'm in the third string."

"Stupid, I don't care if you're in the first string or third string. You like basketball enough to stay for extra practice every night, right? If you like basketball, you can't be bad! Also, Miho here gave you a nickname! She only gives nicknames to her best friends and those that she respects!" Aomine grinned and wrapped an arm around Miho's shoulder.

The girl gave the smaller boy an encouraging smile.

Kuroko widened his eyes at the display of kindness before smiling, "You're strange."

"What?!" Aomine exclaimed at the blunt statement.

"I'm Kuroko Tetsuya. Nice you meet you," the light blue haired boy introduced.

Miho smiled happily at the introductions, "Well, sappy introductions aside, let's practice! Te-chan, I've decided! I'll play some one-on-one with you!"

Aomine stared at the girl as she stood up and rolled up her sleeves in confidence, "Miho, you play basketball?"

The girl continued smiling, "Nope! I have never touched a ball in my entire life!"

Both Kuroko and Aomine sweat dropped, "I wonder how you can actually think of strategies and stuff when you had zero knowledge of the sport just a mere year ago..."

Miho glared at the tanned boy, "You can shut up, Dai-chan! Go play against a ghost! Te-chan, let's practice!"

Kuroko smiled, "Alright."

With that, it became a habit for the trio to spend night after night practicing the sport. Miho felt that by actually playing, she could gain a bit more insight on the basics of the sport. Perhaps she could take some lessons someday...

.-.-.-.

"_Eh_?! Micchan! You cut your hair!" Momoi exclaimed the first thing after Miho walked into the classroom that day.

Miho rubbed her temples. Her long blue hair that used to extend all the way down to her waist was now cut short so that it would end just above the bottom of her shoulder blades. Her bangs were also cut short a bit.

The reason why she had cut her hair was because of the basketball practice she had with Aomine and Kuroko everyday after practice. The two boys have been teaching her the basics of playing the sport and her hair often got in the way, even with it tied up. Thus, she went to a hair stylist over the weekend and restyled her hairstyle a bit. To be honest, she felt that it actually looked better than before.

"Yeah...I cut it a bit..." Miho stated while sitting down at her desk.

"It looks good," Midorima stated from behind the girl.

Miho widened her eyes and turned around. He...complimented her?! No...that wasn't possible, was it?

"I mean the hairstyle," the green haired shooter quickly added.

Miho sighed, she should've figured, "Thank you."

Midorima quickly turned around with a blush, "I-I wasn't complimenting you, idiot!"

Miho let out a small laugh, "Of course not. I know that."

Midorima let out a 'hmph', "Good."

Momoi skipped up to the girl's desk, "So what brought on the change? I admit it looks better than before."

Miho place her chin on her hand as she sat, "Well, I'm learning to play basketball. Thus, I don't want my hair to get in the way."

This caught both Momoi and Midorima's attention.

"Wh—really?! Does that mean that Micchan actually likes basketball now?!" Momoi happily asked.

Miho smiled softly, "Hm...yeah. I like it. It's all thanks to him..."

In her mind, an enthusiastic tanned ace stood there grinning at her. He was the one who showed her how much fun basketball could be.

"_Him? _Who's him, hm?" Momoi raised both of her eyebrows in question before she leaned close to Miho and whispered, "It's Dai-chan, isn't it?"

The blue haired girl felt a blush immediately creeping on her cheeks the moment the name was mentioned, "N-N-No! Wh—What are you talking about, Sa-chan!"

Momoi grinned at the girl's reaction, "Hmm? Bull's-eye, huh? Don't worry, I won't tell him~!"

"Sa-chan! It's not true!" Miho complained while she shook her friend, "It's not like that, really!"

"It's okay! There's no need to be shy, Micchan~!" Momoi grinned evilly. Oh boy was she going to enjoy this.

Midorima pretended to not hear the two girls' exchange. However, he had heard everything that was said and he couldn't help but feel something stir from within him.

_"Don't be ridiculous. What happens between Miho and Aomine is none of my business," _Midorima convinced himself and went back to reading the textbook.

Momoi, of course, did not fail to notice the mixed expression on the green haired shooter's face for a split second. There was a glint in her eyes as she continued bugging her blue haired friend. It seemed like things were getting interesting...

* * *

A/N: I do not own Kuroko no Basuke or any of the characters.

OKAY. OMG. First of all, I must say how SORRY I am that I didn't update this since like, forever. Honestly, I almost forgot what the story was about. The reason, well, school. I'm not sure if any of you know what IB, the International Baccalaureate is...but, it's basically a super hard program thing for high school and there's loads of homework everyday. For those of you that have the option of taking IB in highschool, if you are still in junior high, DON'T. It's terrible! I had to work until twelve everyday to finish homework! :'(

Well, enough complaining, I guess. I need to hurry and finish updating about my life so I can hurry and do today's homework... Anyways, I don't even know what I want to say about this chapter anymore.

Once again, please review! If there's no reviews, chances are, I probably won't update for a long period of time, since I have school. -_- So, please review! The more reviews, the more motivation I get to actually write!

Well, I love you all! Sorry for the super late chapter, and I hope you all enjoyed it!

~Yuvi


	7. 天赋 - Special Talent

~**_Second Quarter – Kuroko's Basketball~_**

**_第二季_****_: 黑子的篮球_**

**Through My Heart**

* * *

**Chapter 6 - Special Talent - 天赋**

"You keep dribbling until you reach the hoop and then you _push_ the ball up," Aomine let out a sigh as he demonstrated how to do a layup one more time to both Kuroko and Miho.

The girl watched intensely, "Alright...let me try again..."

After a week of practicing, Miho could finally manage to dribble the ball without it falling out of her range. She had to admit to herself, she was quite pathetic at the sport.

The bluenette put on a determined expression as she dribbled the ball up to the hoop and tried not to just stop like she had the previous time. Instead, she got the ball in position and pushed it up into the air, only to have it fall straight back down.

"Eek!" Miho gasped as she dodged out of the way.

Both Kuroko and Aomine sweat dropped. Even Kuroko could at least manage to shoot the ball during a layup...

Aomine shook his head in disapproval, "Are you like, incapable of playing sports? Just...shoot the ball!"

Miho sighed, "It's not that easy! I feel like I'm going to crash into the wall if I don't slow my speed down at the end of a layup!"

Aomine shook his head, "Ugh...just keep trying. Tetsu even got it...!"

Annoyed, the bluenette picked up the ball again. This time, she would _definitely _get it in! She was going to show that dumb basketball idiot to not make fun of her!

The girl's eyes observed as Aomine did another layup. She analyzed the timing of his jump and his shot...

Letting out a sigh of preparation, Miho snapped her eyes open and tried the layup again.

_"Concentrate...don't slow down too much...push the ball up..."_

_ Whoosh._

Miho watched in amazement as the ball actually went through the hoop, "Wah! Te-chan, Dai-chan! I did it! It went in! It actually went in!"

Aomine and Kuroko turned to her, "Really? Do it again!"

Miho deadpanned at this. The only time it went in and they didn't see it. Well, she guessed that she could do it again...

_Clunk._

With that, the ball bounced disobediently on the rim of the hoop and landed on Miho's head.

Aomine blinked before bursting out into laughter. Even Kuroko covered his mouth to stop his laughing.

Miho glared at the two, "I really did it once! Argh!"

These even practices were great. Despite the teasing and mocking, Miho enjoyed spending her time with these two boys. Before she knew it, she was laughing at herself alongside both Aomine and Kuroko. For the first time in her life, she felt genuinely _happy._

_.-.-.-._

"I want Kuroko Tetsuya promoted to the second string," Miho announced and bowed to the three coaches.

Watanabe widened his eyes, "That guy that just recently stopped throwing up?! Why?"

"Explain your reasoning, Nanase," Shirogane narrowed his eyes, deep in thought.

"As I said before, Kuroko-kun has something different from the rest of the players. If he gets promoted, I'll personally train him to discover his ability and put it to use. I promise I can do it...!" the bluenette bowed again.

"That's absurd! You may have discovered something about the four first years but that's because they are geniuses and have amazing growths and potentials. They would've discovered their skills sooner or later without you. Don't think so highly of yourself!" Watanabe scolded.

Shirogane turned to Sanada, "What is your opinion on this, Sanada?"

The first strings' coach pushed up his glasses and stared at Miho, "I think we should give her two weeks. If she cannot come up with something in two weeks, then we'll demote him to the third string."

Miho widened her eyes, "T-Thank you!"

"We don't have that kind of time! Isn't it better for her to use her so called skills on improving the players that can for sure to be used than some weak third string boy?" Watanabe argued against Sanada's decision.

Shirogane motioned for the arguing to stop, "Nanase, I admit that you have a great ability. Your technique reading and such has improved a lot as well. However Watanabe is correct. If he truly has the skill, then he should be able figure something out himself. I do not want you to waste your time training someone that we might not be able to use. However, I will keep my end of the promise. Tomorrow is the fall test for the third strings. You can observe him until then."

Dejected, Nanase gave a small bow, "Yes, thank you very much. I'm sorry for making such an absurd request."

Shirogane nodded, "You should head to class now."

"Yes, sir," the bluenette nodded and walked out of the door.

Sanada silently watched her leave.

.-.-.-.

_"Nanase Miho from class 7-1, please report to the office,"_ the school intercom sounded.

Miho snapped up from her History research and saw Midorima push up his glasses.

"You should go," he stated.

Miho nodded, "A-Alright..."

She walked out of the library with a sigh. Today was the day of the fall test for the third strings. There was no way that Kuroko was going to be promoted without something special. She had racked her brains hard last night to come up with something that only Kuroko could do. He has a ghostly presence so he could specialize in something like stealing the ball, right? He could be an invisible force that taps the ball out of the opponents' hands... Whatever it was, she needed more time to work with him to develop his skills.

Shaking her head, Miho stepped into the office to find Sanada standing there, looking at her.

"Watanabe has called in sick today. You'll be in charge of the third strings' fall test today. This is an order from Shirogane," the coach sternly told the girl.

"Yes..." Miho nodded, "Thank you for informing me, sir."

When she turned on her heels and was about to leave, Sanada spoke out, "Nanase, don't do anything that you'll regret. Failing to follow orders will get you exiled from the club. Don't risk your position for a player."

Miho paused, "...I won't let you down, Coach Sanada."

With that, she walked out of the office. So Sanada believed that she would raise Kuroko into the second string... She was sure that Shirogane was testing her loyalty to Teiko's club by giving her this job. It was almost like a trap to lure her in...

.-.-.-.

Miho widened here eyes and cursed aloud as she did the testing, "...Damn it...!"

The standards were very high and there was no way that Kuroko could make it to the second string. In fact, he would probably ranked second last, if not last.

Miho remembered what Sanada told her before she entered the gym.

_"Also, Nanase. Shirogane requested for you to recommend the members who score the lowest five on the third string test to drop the club. _

_ Miho stood there paralyzed at this, "S-Sanada-san! I-I can't possibly...!"_

_ Ignoring her protest, Sanada turned and walked away with a dark expression._

Pressing the whistle to her mouth, she shakily blew it. All the players gathered up around her.

"F-For the fall test...this time, n-nobody's going up to the second string...!" Miho bit her lip as she announced, "You all should think about what you're missing when you're practicing...! That's all!"

At that moment, Sanada walked into the gym and stood beside the girl, "I'll do the recommendations. I understand that it's hard for you since he's your friend...good job not messing up."

Miho nodded and ran out of the gym. Why was it so cruel?! She knew that Kuroko worked harder than most of the first stringers and loved basketball even more that Aomine. Thus, why did this have to happen...! She could only hope that he wouldn't quit the club. The girl sat outside the gymnasium and collapsed on the ground.

She felt so useless. Even after a month, she couldn't quit grasp what Kuroko's special skill was. Not wanting to lead him the wrong way, she had kept quiet about it and not spoken about it to anyone.

"I'm sorry..." a whisper came from behind her and Miho stood up to see Kuroko walking with a crestfallen expression while staring at the sky.

She widened her eyes when she saw him collapse and start crying at a lamppost.

"Te-chan...!" Miho gasped and ran over.

The boy turned around with tears in his eyes, "Nanase-san...tell me, what should I do... What should I do...?"

His expression looked like one of a person who's lost all the hope in the world. Miho could only kneel down beside the boy and hug him while he clung to her.

She had a horrified expression on her face and she could feel her own tears falling down. Miho remembered the times when Kuroko would talk about basketball with that glimmer of hope and love in his eyes. She remembered the determination that would be in his eyes when they played against each other in basketball.

Nanase Miho was unsure herself of what he should do, but she knew that he shouldn't quit basketball. He _couldn't_ quit basketball.

"Don't quit," Miho whispered and released the boy, "You can't quit. I haven't told you this, but I think you're hiding a talent—something that's different from Dai-chan and the rest of the players. Come on let's go see Dai-chan."

With renewed determination, Miho dragged Kuroko to the gym where they always practiced and saw three familiar figures by the door.

"Oh, Miho, Tetsu...!" Aomine waved with a smile at the two.

Akashi, Murasakibara and Midorima turned around, "Miho...?"

Setting his eyes on the light blue haired boy, Akashi narrowed his eyes, "Miho, who is he?"

"Oh...we always practice together," Aomine stated.

"Huh~ I don't remember there being a person like that..." Murasakibara stared at Kuroko.

"That's because he's not in the first string," Aomine stated.

"Huh...I see. Hey, let's go already~ Nana-chin, do you have sweets today? I haven't received sweets from Nana-chin for a long time already," Murasakibara happily asked Miho.

Miho was about to reply when Akashi cut in, "...No, wait. I'm a little interesting in him. Fascinating...I've never seen his type before."

The blue haired girl widened her eyes and met Akashi's gaze, "Sei-chan! You think so too? He's hiding a talent entirely different from the rest of you, right?"

Akashi looked at Miho, "Of course you would notice...so you went to the third string for a month just for this...? Would the rest of you mind going ahead of us? I need to discuss this with Miho for a bit."

The three other boys stared at Miho and Akashi for a while before nodding and shutting the gym door after they left.

Akashi nodded and turned to Miho after they left, "Miho, mind if you explain your observations for the past month?"

The bluenette let out a sigh and told the vice-captain all about Kuroko's hard work and determination.

"...I see. As I thought, you're very interesting. It's the first time I've ever seen...someone who is so serious about basketball, yet has no fruits to show for their labors," Akashi muttered to himself.

At this, Kuroko deadpanned and the atmosphere around him darkened, "I am sorry...I'm currently no in the right state of mind to hear those words."

Akashi sweat dropped and waved his hand, "Ah, I apologize. I didn't mean it that way. I'm impressed. From what I've heard from Miho, your physical abilities are low, but your reflexes aren't bad. It's not as though you're not smart, and it seems your sports IQ is rather high. Looking at your history and the amount of practice, you have a decent amount of experience. Yet, despite all of that, I don't feel anything when I look at you. This is an extremely special situation. Usually anyone who plays sports to a certain extent and gains experience will begin to emit an aura of strength or weakness. It's unconscious and uncontrollable. To put it more broadly, you lack presence not only in your daily life, but also as a sports athlete. I'll repeat, this is a very special situation. It's not shortcoming and on the contrary, this is your greatest strength. On top of that, you attracted Miho's attention the first moment she glanced at you."

The bluenette laughed, "Well, it was just a coincidence at first, I think. But I started thinking that if he could take advantage of his lack of presence, it would become a great weapon. However, I wanted to observe him a bit more during practices, that's why I requested the coaches to let me observe the third string for a month. I was unsure of whether or not it could actually work..."

"Take advantage of my lack of presence...? Is something like that...even possible?" Kuroko whispered.

Akashi was silent for a while, "Whether it's possible or not if up to your ability. Miho and I won't be able to tell you much more. What we told you just now is not something you can find within established basketball teachings. It means you'll have to invent a completely new style. You'll have to discover it through trial and error. In order to create an entirely new style, you'll have to believe in yourself. Even if it was something either Miho or I could teach you, you'll fail if you're only half convinced."

Akashi paused and gripped Miho's hand as he walked towards the door, "Miho won't be able to supervise you in the third string from now on. She's have her own training duties to do with us. I also have my own practicing and vice-captain duties. We don't have to time to hold your hand and teach you step by step."

Miho stared at the boy as she was being dragged away by Akashi, "Te-chan, we believe in you. I have always believed in you, so you have to try hard, alright?"

Akashi nodded, "I'll also give you some hints. One is, that in order to create something new, you'll have to discard established concepts. Another is, that while you may have a strength, this does not change the fact that you yourself, is still weak. You should use your ability for the team, not for yourself."

With that, Akashi opened the door but then paused again, "Oh yes, one more thing. This isn't a hint but even if you come up with an answer, we probably won't be able to test its effectiveness through the regular periodic test. When you know, you'll have to come see me or Miho. We'll recommend you to the coach and captain and have them test you in a different way."

Akashi gave the boy a smiled before dragging Miho out of the gym and then closing the door.

"S-Sei-chan..." the girl whispered in awe at his way of handling things. There was no way that she could've told him all of that just by one glance. Miho would've hesitated and worried if what she was doing was right.

The red haired boy smiled at her before releasing her hand. After that, they both turned and noticed Midorima leaning against the wall.

"Shin-chan..!" Miho widened her eyes while Akashi smiled.

"I see you were listening, Midorima," the vice captain noticed.

The three started their walk home, "I was curious about the guy who caught yours and Miho's eye. But I still can't believe it. Do you two seriously think that he can become useful on the court?"

"...We'll see. Miho's opinion of him and mine are completely different. To me, he's just a stranger I just met. It's not my duty to take care of him. However, Miho seems to have grown attached to the boy...?" Akashi smiled at the girl suggestively.

The bluenette stared at the sky, "I thought Sei-chan was pretty amazing, telling him everything like that. But then again, I guess it's because he's a good friend of mine that I couldn't make him throw away everything he's strived for so far and create a new technique. I know that I won't be able to help him much since nobody knows what he's completely capable of, other than himself. But I'll definitely help him when he needs it."

Akashi patted the girl's head, "Miho, you're too soft. His style...you should let him figure it out on his own. If he fails, then you'll just be wasting your time, right?"

Miho stayed silent. She was grateful to Akashi overall. Without him, Kuroko would've given up on hope by now. However, he now has a renewed determination.

A small smile creeping up her face, Miho stared up into the sky, "...Yeah."

.-.-.-.

Kuroko stood in the empty gym and picked up the ball on the ground.

He has decided. He will grasp onto this glimmer of hope and not let go. He would not let Miho's efforts go to waste.

He would stand back up again and fulfill all the promises he had made over the past year—to Aomine, to his childhood friend, and to Miho.

* * *

A/N: Disclaimer - I do not own KuroBasu of any of the characters.

OMG. WOW. I HAVE NOT UPDATED IN FOREVER. Okaaay... SORRY. I'm really sorry for not updating in so long. School is so busy...feels like it has been three years since it started already...ugh... Well, my school life aside, I am currently having an extremely unhealthy obsession with Rivaille/Levi from Shingeki no Kyojin/Attack on Titan. Gah, he's so cool... *Starts fangirling all over again. Don't worry though, I am still completely obsessed with Kuroko no Basuke. Can't wait for the new chapter of the manga to come out...!

Okay. Hoops is still going. I'll update it once the Heart arc is finished, I think. Which.. at this rate, is not going to be finished for a while. But I really wanted to update this time because of your amazing reviews. I was so mighty happy when reading them! Thus, if you want a faster update, please review! They really spur me on!

Anyways, please review, and I love you all!

~Yuvi


	8. 第一次接吻 – First Kiss

~**_Second Quarter – Kuroko's Basketball~_**

**_第二季_****_: 黑子的篮球_**

**Through My Heart**

* * *

**Chapter 7: 第一次接吻 –****First Kiss**

"Haizaki-kun, thirty laps around the gym, then do fifty pushups, fifty sit ups, and fifty squats," Nanase Miho glared at the grey haired boy who immediately sweat dropped.

"Oh man...I forgot you were coming back today... Captain's late punishments were never as harsh as yours..." Haizaki grumbled as he lazily stepped into the gym.

"Hmm, you want seventy-five laps? Alright!" Miho smiled at the boy who shook his head and in disbelief and immediately started running.

Aomine scratched his head, "Man, I almost feel bad for him."

Midorima pushed up his glasses, "Being late for practice is intolerable. Miho's way of handling it is completely acceptable."

Akashi let out a small smile, "It's lively with her back..."

"Dai-chan! Hurry up and start your warm up exercises! Atsu-chan, stop eating this instance! Spit out your gum to avoid choking!" Miho glared at the two, who immediately did as they were told.

The practice went along smoothly and Miho tested the improvements of all the regulars again. Soon the practice ended.

Miho was about to head to practice in the gym again with Kuroko and Aomine, but Momoi pulled her aside.

"Oi, Miho, are we going?" Aomine looked over his shoulder.

The bluenette let out a sheepish smile, "Um...It seems like Sa-chan has something to discuss. Tell Te-chan I'll be little late."

Aomine raised an eyebrow at Momoi's creepy expression before nodding and walking off.

"Sa-chan, what's wrong?" Miho asked when Aomine finally was out of vicinity.

Momoi gave the girl a grin, "Micchan, you like Dai-chan, right?"

Hearing the question, Miho immediately pales and turned on her heel to walk away from Momoi's piercing eyes.

However, her attempt to escape was futile as Momoi grabbed a hold of Miho's arm and tugged her back, "You do! If you keep avoiding the question, then you do!"

"I don't know if I like him or not!" Miho blushed and let out a sigh.

It was true that she has been spending a _lot_ of her free time with Aomine these days, but all they were really doing was just playing basketball. Despite everything, Aomine was a pretty good teacher.

"Huh. Micchan, you can't not know whether or not you like him!" Momoi pouted, unsatisfied at the answer.

"It's true though! It's fun being around him, but whether or not I like him..." Miho let out a small sigh.

Momoi huffed out a disbelieving sigh, "Geez! Midorin and Dai-chan like you, you know! Akashi-kun is also showing interest in you! He gave you that ring, right?"

Miho stared at the ring before raising an eyebrow and putting her hand on Momoi's head, "Sa-chan, do you have a fever?"

The pink haired manager was flustered by this, "Micchan! It's true!"

Miho shook her head, "Hahaha, Sei-chan and Shin-chan liking someone, can you even imagine that?"

The bluenette burst out in giggles at the thought.

Momoi thought for a while before letting out a sigh, "Y-Yeah...I guess that's true..."

With that, Miho gave the pink haired girl a smile, "It's fine! I haven't really been thinking about it at all. I've been seeing all of them as teammates up until now. I'll consider my feelings for Dai-chan when I need to. Alright, bye!"

Momoi only stood there, shocked at the girl's careless attitude, "Y-Yeah..."

.-.-.-.

"You're late!" Aomine messed up Miho's hair as she walked into the gymnasium.

The girl let out a sigh, "Sa-chan wanted to talk to me..."

"Ah, well, I guess it can't be helped then. Satsuki's a big nag, after all," Aomine grinned before passing Miho the ball, "C'mon! Let's practice!"

Seeing Aomine laugh and smile while practicing, Nanase felt her heart pounding a bit.

Could it be...? Does she really like Aomine?

.-.-.-.

"So, how's it going? Does it look like you'll find something? Akashi and Miho's so called 'your style of basketball,'" Aomine asked Kuroko as they walked home from practice.

Miho let out a sigh, "Dai-chan, don't talk about someone else when they are right beside you."

Aomine laughed, "Haha, sorry!"

To this, Kuroko just sighed, "...Nothing yet."

"I'm not surprised. Miho, are you sure you weren't just messing around?" Aomine questioned while suppressing his laughter.

The girl stared up into the sky, "To be honest, Sei-chan probably can see his ability better than I can. What I can say now from looking at you, is that you should probably focus on an assist ability like passing or stealing since you are not good with the more physical strengths like shooting."

"...That's what I've been thinking as well. Nanase-san, Aomine-kun, what kind of person is Akashi-kun?" Kuroko asked.

"Hm? Well, he and Miho are actually quite alike. He's smart, and always sees what's going on around him. Also, unlike Miho's worse-than-crappy basketball skills, his basketball ability is pretty above average. I've got no complaints about him being the point guard," Aomine explained.

"Dai-chan...I thought I told you it was rude to make fun of someone when they are right beside you...!" the bluenette grumbled again while Kuroko was thinking.

"So I'm not supposed to aim to become a point guard. Not that that worked in the third string either. It's even more unnecessary with Akashi-kun there," the small boy resting his chin on his fingers—deep in thought.

"Well, it's not like Akashi can do everything either. There's gotta be something he can't do," Aomine stated.

"What, for example?" Kuroko replied, looking at Aomine in earnest.

"Maybe, some kind of awesome pass that bends... Banana Pass! ...Or something like that..." Aomine suggested while making a twisting motion with his hand.

Both Kuroko and Miho sweat dropped, "I don't think anyone can do that..."

While walking, the three passed a bookstore.

Kuroko turned towards Aomine and Miho, "Sorry, but there's a novel that I wanted to get."

Aomine turned to Miho before back at the boy, "Alright. We'll head on first then."

"Yeah, good luck, Te-chan!" Miho smiled before waving and walking away with Aomine.

Kuroko nodded and entered the bookstore. He picked up his novel and also walked over to the sports area.

There were many basketball books: Basketball, Street Basketball, Basketball Techniques, Eleven Best Basketball Techniques, and many more.

Kuroko stared at them for a while before considering Miho, Akashi, and Aomine's words.

_"You should probably focus on an assist ability like passing or stealing since you are not good with the more physical strengths like shooting."_

_ "One is, that in order to create something new, you'll have to discard previous established concepts."_

_ "While you may have a strength, this does not change the fact that you yourself, is still weak. You should use your ability not for yourself, but for the team."_

_ "Maybe, some kind of awesome pass that bends..."_

_ "Well, it was just a coincidence at first, I think. But I started thinking that if he could take advantage of his lack of presence, it would become a great weapon."_

Remembering all that he has heard, Kuroko placed his hand on a specific book and stared at it.

The Art of Manipulating the Gaze...

_"That's it...!"_

.-.-.-.

"Aw, shit! It's pouring!" Aomine cursed as the rain suddenly crashed down from the sky.

Both he and Miho covered themselves with their bags.

"Ah, there's a playground there! Let's go hide in there for now and wait until the rain stops...!" Miho pointed to a small park.

There was a playground with a large slide that could be used as shelter for the time being.

With that, the two middle schoolers ran towards the playground and took cover.

Miho giggled once they both squeezed under the slide, "Wow, this brings back memories. It's like being in elementary school and playing hide and seek all over again!"

Aomine stared at the girl as she smiled and laughed. Even in this kind of situation, she would find a way to be so optimistic. He liked it. And her hair looked so blue and soft... She was so pretty...

Snapping himself out of his dirty thoughts, Aomine took a towel out of his sports bag and passed it to the girl, "Here, wipe yourself with this."

The girl stared at the towel skeptically.

Noticing her stare, Aomine smiled, "It's clean."

Miho laughed apologetically, "S-Sorry..."

"It's fine. I wouldn't want to use some other guy's sweaty towel either," the boy laughed.

The bluenette smiled along and wiped her hair with the towel, "Thank you."

"No problem," Aomine grinned and also wiped himself off with the towel.

"It looks like we'll be stuck out here for a while..." Miho observed and let out a sigh, "If only I brought an umbrella..."

The two were silent for a while before Aomine grinned, "Let's tell some embarrassing stories."

There was an evil glint in his eyes that Miho didn't like one bit. However, they were stuck out here in the rain and her heart was thumping non-stop in her chest. Despite everything, she was hiding under the small slide, _alone_ with Aomine. The shelter was also small and their shoulders were touching.

"Well then, Dai-chan can go first!" Miho smiled and nudged him lightly.

Aomine made a face, "Hey! Ladies first!"

"No, you were the one who suggested this in the first place. Tell me an embarrassing story about yourself!" the bluenette insisted.

"Ugh...fine! In third grade, I scared Satsuki with a frog and as revenge, she made me a bento for lunch. That made me throw up on myself when I was doing a show-and-tell!" Aomine grumbled and turned his face away from the girl.

Miho laughed softly, "I better make sure that Sa-chan never enters my kitchen..."

"Yeah, that would be smart. Now your turn! Let's hear Miss. Mature and Calm's embarrassing story!" Aomine grinned.

Miho paled before thinking for a while. There really wasn't anything that embarrassing...

"Um...In elementary school, I missed three hours of classes because I couldn't find my room. Whenever I asked someone, I couldn't manage to follow his or her directions. In the end, my parents called the police because they thought I was missing. However, they found me in the boy's bathroom in the end..." the girl whispered the last part and Aomine burst out laughing.

"Hahaha! Oh yeah! Satsuki did tell me something about how you got lost on your way to practice during your second month in Teiko! Your sense of direction...hahaha! Priceless!" the boy clutched his stomach and continued laughing.

"D-Dai-chan! It's not that funny! Hallways are always confusing!"

"How'd you end up in the guys' bathroom?!"

"It was an accident! I was lost, worried, and confused!" the girl protested.

The endless bickering kept up for a while before Miho looked beyond the slide, "Oh, the rain is stopping."

"Hm...really?" Aomine peeked over the girl's shoulder.

At that moment, the girl turned around and her eyes widened. Aomine's face was just about an inch away.

Miho couldn't move. It was like something paralyzed her in place as the two bluenettes stared in each other's eyes.

"Shit..." Aomine lightly cursed as he felt his hand moving up towards the girl's head—his fingers curling into her soft, blue hair, pulling her forward.

He saw her eyes flash in shock before they closed and her delicate hands gripped his shoulders tightly.

He felt bad—so bad. He never wanted this to happen—it was just something that occurred on the spur of a moment. He knew that he didn't deserve her first kiss—he knew that _she_ didn't deserve a first kiss like this. She was like an angel. She deserved candles and fireworks—not some dirty rocks on a playground.

However, he couldn't stop. It was like a drug, her lips. His other hand slips around her hip and pulled her cold, wet body against his chest. He could feel her quick heartbeat and her pulse racing.

She was just a nervous as he was.

However in that split moment, her eyes snapped open and she pushed roughly against his shoulders.

Even in the dark, Aomine could tell that her cheeks were flushed and her lips were red and swollen, "D-Dai-chan. I'm sorry. I-I've got to get going now."

With that, she ran back out into the rain leaving him there under the slide.

Aomine Daiki loved basketball the most out of everything in his life. However, seeing her run away with that scared and shocked expression on her face shattered everything inside him.

'Heartbroken', might be the right word for the situation.

And for the first time in his life, basketball wouldn't be able to replace the piece of his heart that was smashed into pieces during this cold, rainy day.

.-.-.-.

Miho stared at the ceiling lifelessly as she sat in the bathtub after arriving home. Her mind was a befuddled mess and she couldn't think straight about anything at all.

_What had just happened?_

It had started raining all of a sudden when she and Aomine were walking home from practice. They exchanged embarrassing stories under a slide in a playground and then—

They kissed.

The feeling was completely indescribable. The thrill, shock, excitement, shivers down her back, ecstasy—it felt...surreal.

Every girl often dreamed about what her first kiss would be like. However, Miho had never imagined it to be like _this_. It was under the heavy rain and under a slide in a kids' playground. Yet, there was a shiver of anticipation and excitement that ran through her every time their lips touched.

It was like time stopped into place and there was only the two of them in their own world.

Miho would be lying if she said she didn't enjoy it.

That is, until _he_ appeared in her mind.

She couldn't quite understand _why_ he would appear. Once she saw him, she felt a sense of guilt and wrongdoing wash over her. At first, she tried to ignore it. However, the feeling soon became unbearable.

Sadness, frustration, and shame—it was like she was being told that what she was doing was _wrong_.

Then she realized that it _was_ wrong. She didn't reciprocate Aomine's feelings. It wasn't him that she loved—it was his passion, his basketball.

Even though that was the case, she still didn't understand why _he_ appeared. For how long had the green haired boy been on her mind already? Was it since that day in the library, when he a sense of mutual understanding spread between them?

When did this feeling of attachment start growing? When did she start feeling guilty about approaching another guy when he was around?

_When had these feelings developed...?_

The blue haired girl buried herself under the warm water of the tub. She felt like she was suffocating. It hurt, this feeling.

.-.-.-.

"Haa..." Miho let out a sigh for the fifth time that lunch period.

Momoi immediately raised an eyebrow, "Hey Micchan, what's wrong? You've been sighing a lot since this morning.

To this, the bluenette just let out another sigh. She made sure to avoid Aomine at all costs this morning because she was unsure of what to do once she faced him. She was scared of what _he_ was going to do.

The pink haired manager was definitely suspicious now. There was unquestionably something fishy going on. Aomine had been acting strange at the morning practice today as well.

"...Don't tell me..." Momoi started, staring at Miho intently, "Did something happen between Dai-chan and Micchan?!"

Miho immediately choked on the piece of sushi that she had been chewing.

Panicked, Momoi immediately passed her friend a glass of water, "M-Micchan! Are you okay? Swallow! Breathe!"

Miho drank the water and swallowed before letting out yet another sigh, "Ugh...I think I almost died there..."

"Micchan...are you okay...?" Momoi asked, sweat dropping.

"Yeah..."

"Well...judging by your reaction, something did indeed happen. Micchan, you can always talk to me, you know. You won't solve anything on your own," Momoi stared worriedly at the bluenette.

Letting out a sigh, Miho started telling her story of all the events that occurred yesterday.

After the whole story, Momoi was rendered speechless, "..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...W-Wha—Wait, he _kissed _you?!" Momoi hissed into her friend's ear.

Miho blushed softly, "Y-Yeah... I think so..."

"W-Whaaaa! Really?! For real?!" Momoi exclaimed, placing both of her hands on the table.

Miho glared at the pink haired girl, "Shush! Everyone's staring at us...!"

"I'm sorry...I'm just so shocked that Dai-chan kissed you... I always thought he was a big basketball idiot that cared about nothing else in the world..." Momoi shook her head in disbelief, "But you're saying that Midorin suddenly appeared?!"

"Ugh...quiet down, Sa-chan..."

Momoi nodded at this and her expression turned serious, "This is just my opinion...but I think Micchan should think things over a bit and just continue with her life until her feelings are more clear...! Love isn't something that should be rushed. Besides, you're only in your freshmen year of middle school!"

Miho thought about it for a while before nodding, "Yes...now that you say that, I think so as well. I still really don't understand anything and I think I might not be that ready...thank you so much, Sa-chan."

The pink haired girl smiled happily, "I'm glad I helped! It's the first time you ever asked anything of me!"

Miho laughed, "Yeah. Um...I'm going to go apologize to Dai-chan now. Even though it's going to be awkward, I want to resolve this as quickly as possible."

Momoi stared at the blue haired girl as she walked away. She truly was amazing...Taking the initiative to apologize even though she was nervous and scared... Momoi knew she could probably never do it.

.-.-.-.

"Aomine, you've had that grumpy look on your face for a while now. Would you care to tell us the problem? I can't have you messing up during practice," Akashi finally gave in to his frustration and asked the blue haired boy directly.

Aomine looked up, "I'm fine."

"Mine-chin doesn't seem fine to me~ Is it because of Nana-chin?" Murasakibara mused.

Aomine spat out the water that he was drinking at this, "Pftt! W-Why would you think that?!"

"So it _is_ because of Miho. I thought as much," Akashi sighed.

Midorima stayed quiet during all the chatter about Miho and Aomine.

At that moment, the blue haired girl showed up at the table.

_"Oh god...speak of the devil,"_ Aomine thought and started to show extreme interest in his bento lunch.

"Miho, do you need anything?" Akashi asked the blue haired girl.

The later smiled gently, "May I speak to Dai-chan in private please?"

Everyone at the table just stared at the two before giving a nod.

Aomine got up and refused to meet Miho's eyes as the two strode out of the cafeteria.

After they were out of sight, Midorima stood up, "I'm leaving."

Akashi raised an eyebrow, "Midorima. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," the green haired boy bluntly stated before walking away.

"Is...that so...?" the vice captain of the basketball team narrowed his eyes.

This was pretty bad. It seems that more than one of the regulars were bothered by the existence of that girl. Even he, himself was slightly bothered at times. At first, he thought it was just Aomine. But now, it was clear that Midorima was also showing evident changes...

.-.-.-.

"Dai-chan, will you please listen to me for just a while?" Miho begged as she grabbed the sleeve of Aomine's uniform.

The blue haired boy let out a sigh, "Listen, Miho. I'm s—"

"I'm sorry!" Miho bowed before the ace could apologize, "About what happened yesterday...I'm really sorry. I wasn't thinking about the consequences and that at all...!"

Aomine stood there, stunned at the scene before him, "Damn it...Miho...I...why are you apologizing? I was the one that took the initiative. I know you don't feel the same way and I took advantage of the situation."

"It's not," Miho stated with a serious expression on her face, "Dai-chan...I want us to remain as friends... It's not that I don't feel the same way, but I feel that we should both think some things over. It's too early to rush into a relationship we might regret later on... Also, well, I want to preserve the friendship I have now with everyone. Practicing after school with Dai-chan and Te-chan makes me really happy all the time. I really...really don't want that to all disappear."

Aomine place his large hand on the girl's head, "...Heh, we really think alike in some things, huh. I was just thinking that I wanted to hear more of your embarrassing stories."

The blue haired girl laughed, "Alright...! I'm looking forward to it...!"

Unknowing to the two, a shadow walked away from the conversation silently.

* * *

A/N: Um. Um... Okay. I'd like to really apologize so much for this delay. But school has been getting to me and yeah... I know, it's the same excuse, but I really am busy!

Well anyways. That kiss... You guys probably don't know how bad I felt for Aomine in this chapter. Like he's still so pure right now and not a complete jerk yet! And then, bam! Yeah...

Well I decided to post this cause it was Thanksgiving weekend and I had an extra day off from school! Yay! So, take it as your award for reviewing.

I'd like to thank all of you that reviewed. Those comments really made my day! It's because of the reviews that I decided to write this, actually! So, thank you all so much! Please keep reviewing. If I get a lot of reviews, I'll try to post the next one by next week! Also, I'll try to post another chapter of Hoops this weekend as well, so stay tuned! We'll finally get the Aomine and Miho date in that one!

Okay, sorry for my rambling. Haven't gotten to talk to you guys for a while now, haha. Well, please review, review, review! I hope you enjoyed the chapter.

Aurevoir!

Je vous aime tous!~

~Yuvi


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